


Betrayer Betrayed

by LadyLuce



Category: Devil May Cry
Genre: Angst, Drama, F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-02-11
Updated: 2016-08-31
Packaged: 2018-01-12 00:20:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 27,162
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1179666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyLuce/pseuds/LadyLuce
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When their powers are stolen Dante and Vergil are forced to cooperate in order to survive, and might just avoid killing each other with Lady's help, but as they journey deeper into hell chasing the demon who thwarted them they begin to uncover secrets of their existence which refuse to stay buried. Is the bond of brother's strong enough to suffer even the deepest of betrayals?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted FFN 2008. Earlier chapters need revising a little :)

Chapter 1

The usually comforting weight of his twin guns rested in his palms did little to calm the demon hunter's nerves at that moment. In fact he was so jumpy he'd wasted half a clip on a rat before he'd realised that it wasn't some blood-thirsty demon. He didn't honestly know why he had suddenly become so skittish, this whole thing was normally a breeze for him – in fact it was more than that, he downright loved it – so why was he suddenly terrified of anything that moved? There was something in the air, he could feel it (unless that was just his imagination acting up too) but every time he felt at ease again it came back, something angry, and foreboding. Nearly as ominous as the call had been in the first place; very blunt, to the point, but hiding something – and before Dante had had the chance to ask what the stranger had hung up on him.

Maybe he should have just let the guy rot and not taken the job, but Dante couldn't ever quite resist a challenge – and good paying jobs were hard to find. That was why he was wandering around some creepy old church in the dark letting his imagination go haywire when nothing immediately jumped out and tried to decapitate him – as per usual.

He'd checked the graveyard first, found nothing, and headed inside. This place was bigger than he'd expected, somewhere on the edge of town it had taken him an hour or two to get here and the guy hadn't even showed up. If he didn't get paid someone was going to be in big trouble. He needed that money so that he could carry on consuming his daily dosage of extra cheese and pepperoni. Currently he was having to ration his pizza intake which just wasn't good enough; business hadn't been all too good after Lady and he had cleaned up the few demons who got through to the human world post Temin-ni-gru. Either they were staying away from him or for whatever reason they couldn't get through as easily as before. It wouldn't have bothered him so much, if he wasn't always in debt one way and another. Dante had a habit of breaking things – both whilst he was working and at home – and the costs were all adding up. In fact he'd nearly broken the phone trying to answer it for this call.

Of course Dante wasn't thinking about any of this as he eyed the stained glass windows carefully, not liking the feeling of the eyes following him. He couldn't tell whether they were real or not, every time he turned he came face to face with some painting or another and it took every ounce of training he had not to blast the windows and ornaments into dust – because he could just see that going down well with whoever owned this place. (It probably wouldn't put him in God's good-books either. You know if you believe in that sort of stuff).

The moon light filtered in through the coloured glass, painting the floor and pews with a washed out rainbow as Dante made his way up the aisle of the church. His footsteps echoed all too loudly in the silent, hollow, room and the tension in the air was building with every waiting moment. The hairs on the back of his neck rose as he did another three-sixty to make sure nothing was trying to sneak up on him; Ebony and Ivory poised and his finger suddenly itching to pull the trigger if it would alleviate the deafening silence. There was something here, he just knew it – he could  _feel_  it – so why was it toying with him? If whatever creature may have been lurking in the shadows was intelligent enough to mess with his head like this then that meant trouble.

He took another few steps forward eyes swivelling in their sockets to check the shadows as he glanced behind him again before moving forwards. It shouldn't have been this nerve wrecking; the constant nagging sensation that there was something desperately wrong was driving him mad. Dante was about to give up and shout at whatever creature may have been lurking in the shadows to come and get him when something at the corner of his vision stopped him. He titled his head, craning his neck to try and get a better look with out getting too close in case it was a trap.

A glimmer of moonlight caught his eye reflecting off something… though Dante couldn't make out what in the gloom. His eyes widened a second later seeing a pool of dark liquid spreading out into the aisle. Blood; it was almost black in the darkness, but he could make out the faintest hints of sanguine where the moonlight reflected off its seemingly flawless surface. Guns poised for an attack he slowly made his way up past the remaining pews to the altar and almost dropped both beloved weapons upon seeing the sight which greeted him. His eyes widened, face blanching, and he found to his complete dismay that his hands were shaking as they gripped the twin guns. He gritted his teeth, keeping both sights locked on the prone form as he slowly circled round to get a better look at the figure's face. Just because the man looked unconscious didn't mean that he couldn't leap up and attack at any moment; Dante wouldn't have expected any less from him. Though he wasn't responding at all to the presence mere inches away from him as Dante bent down, both guns still trained on the figure's fore-head.

Dante's heart had leapt into his throat as he lowered one gun to the ground with a metallic  _clunk_  before reaching out a hand to grip his twin's shoulder and give it a firm shake.

"Vergil…?"

No response. Dante leaned back on his haunches and ran his free hand through his hair completely and utterly lost. How could his brother be here of all places? He had fallen into hell… Dante had seen him go; still had the glove where Vergil had sliced his hand open. So how on earth had he ended up here…?

Reaching out a hesitant hand he brushed some of the silvery hair from his brother's face, just to check it was him… His hand met a viscid substance and he drew back alarmed suddenly remembering the blood he had seen spilling into the aisle. Vergil's temple was split open, blood pouring profusely from the wound. Fear over-rode all other emotions as he studied his twin's all too pale face, a trail of dried blood running from Vergil's nose and the corner of his mouth. It took him a few seconds to remind himself that head-wounds bled a lot… but that much?

A further assessment of his brother's injuries told him that Vergil had been stabbed in the left shoulder. Dante half wished it had been his right – at least then his twin might have been hampered in any attempts to decapitate him. Not that it would really help. Vergil had probably learned to fight ambidextrously, Dante wouldn't put it past him; his twin always had been a bloody perfectionist.

The amount of blood was worrying though – that and the fact that someone had managed to knock his brother out – Vergil should be fit as a fiddle by now; the blood was clotting on the wounds meaning they'd been inflicted quite some time ago. That meant Vergil  _should_  be healed, especially from such minor scrapes. Panic flared through him as he felt for his brother's pulse suddenly forgetting that this was the same person who had tried to kill him… how many times now? Somewhere at the back of his mind something was telling him that he should be finishing Vergil off not concerning himself with his twin's well being. After all Vergil probably wouldn't be so courteous to him…

Dante's thoughts were jarred from him as pain exploded in the side of his head and something sent him flying. He barely managed to maintain his grip on Ebony as he slammed into the opposite wall feeling pain spasm in his lower back. Picking himself up he brought Ebony up quickly and squeezed off half a clip aiming at the shadowy figure across the room from him. The demon didn't bat an eye, side-stepping the bullets and making Dante growl in frustration. The hollow  _shink_  of the trigger locking told him that the cartridge was empty and that was apparently what the creature had been waiting for. A sudden blur and he was pinned against the wall Rebellion digging into his back as his head slammed into the hard stone. Ebony slipped from his hand upon the force of impact and he heard the gun clatter to the ground at the creature's feet.

Now he could see the face of his enemy up close; bright yellow eyes shining with mirth and thin lips pulled into a twisted smile which depicted a warped version of childish glee. Dante shuddered instinctively turning his head away as the stench of death seared his nostrils the creature's fowl breath turning his stomach. It – whatever it was – looked young, maybe even a few years younger than him; face utterly white and smooth as if he were sculpted from bleached bone. As inanimate as a statue save for the burning yellow eyes in the depths of his skull. His lips twitched upwards in the infinitely flexible, but minimal lines of a cartoon as he stared at his prey with those burning eyes.

Dante took a ragged breath, his mind just catching up with everything after the dizzying blow, as he registered the hand squeezing painfully tight around his neck. His legs lashed out furiously as he gripped the demon's arm in both of his using all his strength to pry the hand away and knock the creature off. It was strong, stronger than Dante would have liked, but he still managed to free himself from its grasp and draw Rebellion pointing the tip at his foe's neck just waiting to cleave the demon's head from his shoulders.

"I don't know what you are, but it's time to send you back to where you belong; one first class ticket to hell coming right up," Dante grinned some of his usual arrogance returning. Now that he was fully concentrated on the fight at hand he could even start to enjoy it. Though Vergil was still in need of some help unless he decided to start healing and come join in. For some reason Dante knew who Vergil would choose to side with in this particular fight, and it wasn't him.

Then the demon did something Dante hadn't quite expected. It laughed; a deep languorous sound which caught the devil hunter off guard.

"Been there, and quite frankly I like it much better here," the demon yawned voice dripping with sarcasm.

Dante gritted his teeth eyeing his foe for weapons, but he could see none until his eyes caught a glimmer of silver in the creature's hand. A dagger… it was either arrogant or incredibly foolish. Didn't it know who he was? He couldn't be killed by such a worthless excuse for a weapon. Then again – his eyes sidled over to Vergil – best not under-estimate this one.

"Ah your brother," the creature said in a bored tone following Dante's gaze. "Yes, about that, you see my master wants the pair of you dead and as much as I hate to go and spoil the fun I really should be getting back. If you hadn't taken so long getting here maybe we could have had a longer chat."

It lunged at him then with a speed even the devil hunter couldn't match as he dodged; the blade nicking the side of his neck when he threw himself out of the way. He crashed through the first row of pews silently cursing the demon. He was not paying for that! Picking himself up once again he felt the air at his side whip and that was all the warning he got. Mid-turn he felt something pierce his left shoulder as a firm hand gripped his right one pulling him back onto the blade. He saw the hint of silver protruding from his torn coat glinting a deep red in the wan light. Blood was running down the side of his neck, the cut had been shallow, but for some reason it wasn't healing.

He growled in pain when the serrated blade was twisted savagely in his shoulder, jarring along his collar bone as it was forced to the hilt against his skin. It most certainly wasn't the most painful experience of his life, he'd been stabbed plenty of times, but there was something wrong here his arm was going numb. Trying desperately to trigger he realised that he couldn't and frowned glaring over his shoulder as best he could to try and get a glimpse of his attackers face. The thing was still smiling with the mockery of childish delight as it watched his confusion. Dante tried to pull himself free, but he was shoved roughly back onto the blade and he had to swallow a cry at the sudden pain. It was getting worse – he wasn't sure how that was possible. It shouldn't have hurt  _this_  much. Gritting his teeth he stamped down on the demon's foot, left elbow jutting out a second later to catch the creature in the solar plexus. There was a satisfying gasp and Dante grinned sliding out of the creatures slackened hold. Well this one was built like a human – strange seeing as demons seemed to despise the human race so much, but he wasn't going to question that now.

Gripping the jeweled hilt he ripped the dagger from his shoulder with a visceral squelch feeling hot viscid liquid running down over his chest and back. Tossing the blade aside he cursed the demon under his breath. The bastard had ruined his coat! As soon as the dagger landed the demon was up again moving too fast for Dante to see and he made a mad dash for Ivory sweeping the gun from the ground at Vergil's side. Air-hiking backwards he landed at the head of the aisle and readying Ivory in his right hand - his left struggling to heal – peered out into the darkened room. The creature had all but vanished; he watched and waited for seconds as the room settled back into an eerie silence, but there was no sign of the demon. God he hated playing this little game, it would drive him mad. Unless the creature had cleared off, though that was unlikely…

Then raucous laughter filled his ears reverberating around the church disconcertingly and making it impossible to pin-point its source until that voice spoke again.

"Sorry to leave so soon," the demon drawled from its perch in one of the open windows in the roof of the church; moonlight silhouetting its lithe form. "But I have what I want for now," it grinned dangling the dagger from one hand an amber stone in its hilt glowing faintly. "Maybe next time we can get to know each other a little better," it waved, "until then have fun -  _human_." The last word was spat at him like a curse and before he could even pull the trigger the demon had vanished in a flash of purple flames.

Dante sighed holstering Ivory and raking a hand through his disheveled hair. What on earth had all that been about? He glanced at his left shoulder wearily – and why in hell wasn't he healing? He knew that his main artery went through his shoulder there, pumping an approximate three liters per minute around his body. Of course he had never had reason to use that knowledge before, but now… well if he wasn't healing…

"Shit," he hissed crossing the room in search of Ebony and holstering the gun before turning back to Vergil, now certain his brother wasn't about to jump up and gut him.

This was not good. How long had Vergil been lying there…? How much blood had his twin lost? Why did he even care? Vergil wouldn't be at all worried if he was bleeding to death he'd just stand there and gloat. In fact what he should really do was put a bullet in his brother's brain so that he'd have a head ache when he woke up. Unfortunately for Dante he couldn't quite be that heartless. He rolled his eyes, being at all considerate for another human being could really be a pain in the ass sometimes. He shrugged his own wound off quickly knowing it would heal soon and went to make sure his twin was healing properly.

He was relieved to find that Vergil's wounds had at least stopped bleeding, though his face was still pale – contrasting to the dark blood smeared across his temple. Dante stood back and rested against a wall feeling drained. He should probably leave now, his brother would be perfectly capable without him, but he couldn't quite make himself move. There was so much unfinished business he had with Vergil and to be honest he didn't know where to begin – trying to get Vergil to talk to him would also be nearly impossible.

A sudden gasp to his left snapped him back to the present and Dante looked down wearily, one hand slipping down to rest on Ebony's textured grip the other snaking up to grip Rebellion over his shoulder. Vergil was awake; already pushing himself up to a standing position apparently unscathed though his movements appeared to be stiff. Staying completely still the younger twin realized that his brother had yet to notice him standing in the shadows. Though they were only mere meters away the elder didn't seem to be quite himself; which was understandable really.

Vergil was muttering something under his breath, no doubt cursing the demon who had thwarted them both. "Arrogant little good for nothing-"

"Enjoying your beauty sleep Verg?" Dante grinned, though his grip tightened on Rebellion's hilt; they had never been this close on good terms and he doubted a few years apart would make Vergil any more forgiving. In fact he probably still wanted pay back from their last encounter, and Dante knew his twin could hold a grudge.

Vergil span around faster than a human eye could see, identical electric blue eyes locking. "You," the elder hissed, his tone's intensity hindered by a hint of pain. "How long have you been here?"

"Long enough," Dante replied pushing himself off the wall. "I guess that little brat sure showed you huh?"

There was the ring of steel on steel and the sibilant hiss as the blades slid together, locking at the hilt. Dante tried to ignore the fact that he knew he had only just blocked his brother's attack despite the fact that Vergil was the one who had been unconscious moments before. Vergil also had the upper hand now Rebellion being useless at short range. Dante really didn't like the way this was going – he had hoped to maybe have a bit more of a conversation with Vergil before a fight started; though one had always been inevitable. Maybe provoking the elder hadn't been the best way to go about it…

"Well if it's any consolation he beat me too," Dante admitted trying to break the silence. Maybe something they actually had in common for once would help the flow of conversation? Apparently not.

Vergil pushed back, throwing Dante off and moving in for an attack. Dante kicked off the wall next to them and landed behind Vergil to dodge the blow. He should have known better. Such an amateur move would never have been enough to counter Vergil's speed or his intelligence. As soon as his feet touched the ground he found himself pinned to the wall in a flash of silver as moonlight danced on Yamato's blade. A winded gasp passed his lips accompanying the visceral squelch of tearing muscle and flesh. Dante's eyes widened in shock as he hit the wall and pain seared through his right side. Rebellion fell from his lax grasp as his muscles spasmed, hitting the floor with a clatter and sending a stab of despair through the demon-hunter.

Breathing heavily he stared up at Vergil through the white bangs obscuring his vision and a smirk twisted at the corner of his mouth; how could he have been so stupid? He would have laughed, but the blade shifted in his shoulder, grating on the bone and turning the laughter into a wheezed cough as blood ran into the back of his throat.

"This was you wasn't it?" The younger finally managed feeling the energy draining from him as blood ran down the glittering blade imbedded in his side. "You set me up to kill me."

Vergil snorted derisively. "Don't flatter yourself," he twisted the blade savagely and Dante's breathing hitched as he bit his lower lip to stifle a cry. "You think I'd really go to all this trouble for  _you_?"

Dante chuckled blood spattering Vergil's sword arm, staining the blue silk of his coat a deep sanguine. "You always were one for complicated plans Vergil," Dante grinned up into his twin's cold eyes his breathing faltering slightly with each wet breath. "Honestly you can't be surprised that I would be expecting some over-fabricated plot just so you could kill me."

"I've been spoiling you then," Vergil said a note of something like scolding in his voice; something which tried to convince him that it was fondness, affection, though the malicious glint in his twin's eyes said anything but. He felt his brother's gaze traveling over him, hairs raising on the back of his neck at the icy glare as it finally came to rest on his wounded left shoulder. "You're not healing."

"Neither are you," Dante shot back voice tinged with pain and a slight unease. He should not have been loosing so much blood; at any other time he might have laughed at his own stupidity now something far more bitter than laughter spilled into the back of his throat.

Vergil's eyes darted quickly to his left assessing his blood-stained coat before turning back to his brother. "At least my wounds have stopped bleeding, and I'm the one with the sword."

"Heh," Dante's breath was coming in short, harsh, gasps no longer making it easy for him to talk. Really the wounds in both shoulders should not have been doing so much damage, but he didn't have much time to think about it right at the moment. His vision was clouding with each second as coherence slipped from the edges of his mind. The realization that he would pass out soon, possibly die, hit him with a sense of indifference. It _should_  have mattered to him, it just didn't…

"What's wrong Dante?" Vergil smirked, eyes gleaming predatorily as he watched the younger twin struggle for breath. "Am I hurting you?" He raised an elegant eyebrow noticing just how much Dante was bleeding. "Has that human blood finally run too deep?"

He emphasized his words by thrusting his sword in further, shattering bone and rock with Yamato's cruel blade. A harsh cry was torn from Dante's throat and he struggled to lock gazes with his brother, though to be honest he saw none of his twin left. His blue eyes were filled with steel, platinum hair brushed back – slightly disheveled and red tipped over the wound on his temple – pale lips twisted into a malicious smirk… whatever had once been human in his brother was gone now replaced by something cold; demonic wasn't even the word, robotic was more like it.

All sound was slowly filtering out of the room into a vacuum; everything completely silent save for the pounding of blood in his own ears and each gasp as he labored for breath. Dante's eyes burned, vision tinged with red, swimming with a chaotic disarray of lights and colours.

Vergil had noticed his twin's failing energy as he pulled back finally, the blade leaving the wound with a stomach turning squelch. The elder twin flicked Yamato to the side to clear it of Dante's blood before sheathing the sword and watching his brother closely. Dante's knees buckled and he fell onto all fours with a pained groan, legs far too weak to hold himself up now that his only support had been removed. His eyes widened slightly as he took in the pool of blood around him; his blood.

"Shit," Dante shook his head slowly trying to gather his scattered thoughts, "is this all mine?"

He felt the sharp prick of cool steel under his chin and raised his head to stop Yamato's blade from slicing further into his skin.

Vergil was staring down at him, eyes glittering with an alien light. Dante opened his mouth to speak, but faltered his breathing was coming too hard and fast to even form an intelligible word. Through his swimming vision he could see the look of disdain Vergil was giving him, though it was replaced by one of confusion a moment later. Dante wished he had the strength to say something then; suddenly his unflappable brother was in a state of disarray – and it was worth having a sword embedded in his gut to see. His lips quivered in an attempt to speak, to laugh in his twin's face, but all thoughts of doing either quickly vanished. With a shuddering gasp Dante's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed, sprawling side-ways in the pool of dark blood.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

He came round slowly voices filtering in and out of his coherence though none of the words registered in his dulled ears. Dante was jerked back to the waking world rather harshly when someone thought it necessary to pry his eyes open and shine an extremely bright light into his sensitive pupils. He grunted twisting his head to the side and making to sit up only to find that he was held down by a firm hand on his shoulder.

Dante grimaced and tried to protest only to find that his tongue seemed to have glued itself to the roof of his mouth. When he attempted to fight back he found it nearly impossible, his limbs were heavy as lead and he wasn't even certain he could feel his fingers or toes. He couldn't quite focus on the people… things… whatever they were hovering above him and that was what worried him the most. He had to strain his ears to catch snippets of conversation and a chaotic storm of colours swam in front of his eyes making it even more impossible to see. The world was spinning of its own accord and he felt the sensation of moving though he couldn't tell if he was imagining it or not.

"V…Vergil?" he croaked. It was all he could manage at the moment. He was shaking, either from the cold or his injuries, he wasn't sure.

Breathing was becoming difficult and he felt his small moment of lucidity was slipping from him as panic set in. There was something wrong with the situation, but his dazed mind couldn't pin-point exactly what. A shuddering gasp and his eyes fluttered as he found himself unable to hold them open anymore. Somewhere in the distance there was the sound of an engine roaring to life, but it slowly petered out of existence as he gave up struggling to figure out what was going on.

* * *

Dante's next thought came a while later with the realization that he has passed out again. This time there was something alien about the place, the smells, something he knew he hated and couldn't quite place. He lost interest in that when he noticed that there was something jammed up his nose and running down his throat pumping air into his lungs. The sensation was a weird one and he didn't like it one bit. But when he moved his hands to try and rip the tubes away from his face he felt the cannula in the back of his hand and the wire wrapped around his arm connecting him to the ECG monitor... What the hell was going on?

He moved slowly aware of the tangle of wires he appeared to be lying in and began to raise his other hand to his face only to have it pressed back into the mattress.

"Dante!"

It was a voice he recognised and he turned his head towards the sound weakly, trying to make the world focus and failing miserably. He blinked a few times, but that did nothing for him and so he concentrated on the voices instead though that also proved impossible.

* * *

 

"What's wrong with him?" Lady asked worriedly eyes darting between the prone form on the hospital bed and the doctor opposite her. Dante's eyes were currently unfocused rolling beneath half-closed lids as he moved with a general lack of lucidity. She'd heard that he had been taken into the hospital a few hours ago and had only just been allowed to see him. Of all the things she'd thought of this she had not expected. A bruised and battered demon slayer lying sprawled in the intensive care unit hooked up to so many machines he looked like the wires were merely an extension of his body.

When she'd first walked into the room she'd nearly run straight back out again. He looked awful laying there relying on those machines to keep him alive.

The doctor looked up at her eyes grave. He really hadn't wanted to bring her in here yet, but she'd been rather… insistent.

"He was in shock when we found him due to severe haemorrhaging-" Lady tried to keep calm as she listened. She didn't care much about the technical side of things she just needed to know how long it would take Dante to get back to his usual self again "-he has a broken rib and a punctured lung, his shoulder bone's been fractured in two places. We can't wake him up just yet because of the endotracheal tube, but his breathing seems to be stable so we'll get him back to his normal self ASAP."

Lady nodded only half hearing what he had said as she brushed some of the hair from Dante's eyes. They had fallen shut again, lashes dark against the even darker rings already appearing beneath them, standing out in stark contrast to his all too pale skin. She couldn't quite understand how this had happened to him – in fact she knew it to be impossible – and was having more than a little trouble comprehending that this was in fact the same person. When she'd first asked about his condition she'd been told to prepare for the worst and whilst he was at least stable now there were so many risks.

Dante shifted eyes fluttering and they caught hers for a moment – at least she thought they did – before they drifted out of focus again.

"He's going to be alright now isn't he?" She asked softly trying to keep her voice even as she watched the doctor insert a needle into the cannula and saw Dante's breathing return to a slow and steady pace as he slipped back into a deeper delirium.

The doctor nodded his head and smiled slightly. Lady couldn't tell whether he was merely trying to reassure her or whether it was meant sincerely.

"He should be fine now, it was touch and go for a bit, but he's been lucky," the doctor left out the fact that the patient had died on them once already. He'd been sliding into shock when they found him in the church and his body had given out on them just as they reached the hospital. To be honest it was a miracle he was still alive, they'd been certain he was dead when they first found him simply from the amount of blood he'd lost.

Lady sighed still keeping her eyes fixed on Dante. "Do you have any idea how this might have happened?"

"Actually that was something we were hoping you could answer," the man replied moving away from his patient though Lady was reluctant to leave his side. Eventually she got the message and left the ICU with the doctor confident that Dante would live though she wished she could have stayed with him.

* * *

 

"What do you want to know?" She asked finally when they were sitting in his office and she had a mug of coffee clasped between her hands. Lady felt a little better now though she was still shaken. When she'd first heard Dante was in hospital she'd thought that it must have been some mistake. It had been almost impossible to recognise him then with the amount of bandages and wires he'd been wrapped in; the neck brace hadn't helped matters. She'd felt sick, part of her had wanted to deny it and run, but the white hair had made him unmistakable.

Lady was anxious to ask questions, but she knew that her cooperation would probably help far more so for now she decided it was best to wait. It wasn't exactly like Dante was going anywhere, but until he woke up she would have to rely on what information she could get out of the doctor.

They were currently being accompanied by a police officer who was standing dictaphone in hand. Apparently it was procedure for situations like this… where it obviously wasn't just an accident. Lady swore that she'd find whatever demon had done this to Dante and make it pay, but until she could get enough info she'd just have to sit tight.

"Maybe we should start with your name?" The policewoman offered.

Lady paused loathe to say her real name, but knowing that there would be a lot of questions if she didn't. The words left her lips with a visible hiss and she pursed them smiling to try and cover the visible annoyance in her voice.

The situations continued to get even more annoying and personal until she was about to demand that it was her turn to ask them something. That was until their last question which threw her off guard.

"There was something our patient-"

"Dante," she cut in irritably.

The doctor smiled knowingly. Lady wondered if he had something else he should have been doing.

"Dante said when we found him."

She folded her arms though her hearing sharpened. "And what was that?"

"A name we think, maybe the one of his assailant," the man paused and Lady was about to snap when he spoke again. "Vergil."

Lady's eyes widened and her jaw dropped slightly though she fought to hide her surprise immediately. The officer looked unconvinced, but she brushed it off and pleaded a head ache brought on by her stressful situation and left the room, heart racing.

Vergil… he was alive? Dante had never told her that he was dead, but she had always just assumed.

Lady paced down corridor after corridor having no particular place to go; just needing to let off steam. She wanted to see Dante, but she'd be turned away if she tried (not that he'd be with it enough to tell her anything relevant) and she didn't want to go home to merely sit and wait. No she needed to find out what the hell was going on.

A familiar voice caught her then, coming from one of the nearby cubicles, and she stood stock still for a heart beat trying to recall who it belonged to.

A nurse pulled back the curtain to leave before turning back to her patient. Lady tried to catch a glimpse of the person occupying the cubicle, but it was no use. "You'll be fine now then I hope?"

"Yes, thank you," came the voice again and the nurse smiled before leaving completely oblivious of Lady's presence.

Lady bit her lip thinking hard, certain that she's heard the voice before. Realization snapped into place a moment later. It took her a second to turn to her left and tear back the curtain to one of the hospital beds.

"You!"

Vergil was sitting on the end of the bed pulling on a light blue shirt over his well toned chest. What he had done with his usual attire Lady didn't know and didn't care either suddenly livid with anger.

"What on earth-?"

The elder twin didn't get the time to finish as Lady pulled the screen back around them and stormed up to him eyes blazing.

"What did you do to him?!" She fumed hands on hips, pinning him with an unmoving gaze. The last time she'd met Vergil had been on similar terms and he'd beaten her in a second, something she hated to remember. Right now though she was far too angry to care and more than a little confused. She was frightened of him, of course she was, but she didn't let it show, she wanted answers.

"I'm sorry, but I don't generally engage in conversation with rude little girls," Vergil replied smoothly making to stand. Lady shoved him back down onto the bed and was slightly surprised at the force she had managed to exert on him. Was Vergil suffering from the same lack of strength Dante was?

"I'm not finished with you," Lady snapped glaring, her eyes so bright Vergil feared he would get hit by the sparks. "What did you do to Dante?"

He threw her a sharp side-long glance. "What makes you think I did anything?"

"He's half dead and he said your name," she shot back. "He could have died."

Vergil smirked his voice laced with sarcasm. "You think I care?"

She had to stop herself from smacking him then. The cold, bored, tone was trying her patience and she couldn't quite understand how someone could be so heartless. Dante was his brother, Lady knew that Vergil had tried to kill him at least three times, but she hadn't been hit with the full gravity of the situation until Vergil said it like that.

She frowned anger dissipating into what she could only place as sadness. "Well you should."

Vergl regarded her quietly for a while then finished buttoning his shirt up and ran a hand through his hair pulling it back though most of the hair-gel had been washed out when the blood was cleaned off leaving the soft spikes in a state of disarray. He stood up and made to push past Lady but she stopped him bi-coloured eyes sparking.

"You're not just leaving!"

"Do you think you can stop me?" He asked eyes flashing with an in-human light.

She grimaced. "I can try there are police here you know. I could tell them."

"Would you want them all to die?" He asked dangerously and her eyes narrowed to slits. God she wished she had brought her gun, she'd be forever happy if she could plant a bullet between his eyes right now.

"He's your brother," she said desperately unable to understand how he could appear so completely ruthless. Vergil didn't seem psychotic like her father had been, he was calm and collected and she knew from his eyes that everything was there so how could he act this way? How could anyone be so completely cold? Simple, her mind told her; he's a demon.

Then as Vergil tried to leave again something clicked into place something she hadn't noticed before because she'd been too busy wanting to kill him. "Why are you here anyway?"

Vergil faltered and looked at her. "What's it to you?"

Lady glanced at Vergil's heavily bandaged left shoulder still visible beneath his shirt and then at the stitches in his temple and the apparently broken nose. "You're just like Dante; you're not healing are you?"

It was Vergil's turn to be silent then. With the evidence staring Lady in the face he couldn't deny it though he knew she'd just found the leverage to make him consider staying. He had intended to talk to Dante about this anyway, just not in this place. He would have cornered him in some alleyway when the demon slayer was better – he didn't want Dante thinking he cared about him. He may have been heartless, but he was not unnecessarily cruel.

"What happened to you two?" Lady asked suddenly bringing him back from his thoughts.

"Why do you care?" Vergil asked sharply running out of patience with her. He could kill her right now with his bare hands, but that probably wouldn't solve the problem.

"If you think for one second I care a bit about you then forget it. I just want to know what's wrong with Dante, alright?" She folded her arms. "And until I get some answers you're not going anywhere. You don't have any weapons right now do you and from my guess you're not as strong as you were. How hard would it be really to catch you when you're like this?"

Lady appeared to have hit a nerve. Vergil's brows knitted together in frustration and his lips twitched downwards in annoyance.

"Do you want to risk it and find out?" He asked his jaw clenched slightly.

"No, I want you to talk to me and see the state you've got your brother in," Lady replied curtly.

"I didn't know," Vergil said his voice almost too quiet for her to hear and there was something in it then which sounded an awful lot like regret.

Lady raised an eyebrow quizzically thinking she must have heard wrong.

"I didn't know it would kill him alright, I didn't know what that demon had done," he replied begrudgingly. "Happy now?"

"Not until you've told me everything."

Vergil sighed. It was beginning to look like he didn't have a choice. Yes he could take on a couple of police officers and security guards, but he knew how many were here. He'd seen them and the sheer numbers might overwhelm him if he didn't even have a weapon (and then there was the wounded shoulder to consider). Once he was in a prison that would be more or less it without his demonic powers to break free. And as he followed Lady down to the relatives' room he hated her for figuring all this out. He would have to remember not to under-estimate humans.

Lady glanced across her coffee cup (this must have been her fifth cup that day) looking at Vergil confused. "So you called the ambulance?"

"Yes," Vergil replied quickly his gaze not once leaving hers.

"But why?"

"Like you said he's my brother," Vergil answered, that same bored tone managing to leak into his voice. "And I want the chance to finish him off properly."

"Figures," Lady tried to remain nonchalant, but her eyes betrayed her. "Did you see the demon which attacked you?"

He shook his head, lips pursed; Lady could tell Vergil wasn't at all happy that he had been beaten so easily.

"The police are looking for you," she informed him deciding that he probably needed to know. As much as she hated the fact her and Dante needed him here so that they could figure out what was going on, not locked up somewhere. "Well they don't know what you look like, but Dante said your name," she looked him over, those wounds were pretty obvious, "and if you're wandering around bandaged up like that they'll put two and two together. Did you give the receptionists your name?"

Vergil shook his head; she wouldn't have put it past him to give a false name really and was glad that his quick thinking might have bought them time. The only problem now was how to keep track of him. There was no way she was letting him out of her sight and she'd planned on staying here until Dante woke up – well more or less anyway – but keeping Vergil in the hospital was going to be risky with all the police milling around.

"So you don't have any of your powers?" Lady asked trying to get everything straight and wondering how on earth either of the twins were going to deal without it. For now she would avoid the more pressing questions, mainly what on earth was Vergil doing in the human world.

Once again his only response was a shake of his head as he drummed his fingers against the arm of his chair.

"How are you going to get them back?" She asked taking slight enjoyment in Vergil's annoyance.

He narrowed his eyes; he knew exactly what he was going to do. He was going to hunt down the little squirt who had taken them and beat him into a bloody pulp. He just knew he couldn't do all that alone, something he did not want to tell Lady.

He was saved from having to answer by a doctor entering the room and clearing his throat. Vergil was inwardly glad though he kept his face impassive and looked down. He didn't quite know how they were going to avoid the fact that Vergil looked exactly like Dante and was also pretty beaten up.

"Err Miss?" The doctor glanced at Vergil, but when he continued to stare at the floor he turned his attention back to Lady. "Your friend's awake."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: This chapter is 1000 words shorter than the last one and a bit of a filler, but it seemed sensible to cut there. Once again apologies for my random updating hopefully I'll get back into the swing of things soon. Thanks for the reviews, favs, alerts and what-not :D
> 
> -Luce


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"Dante?"

The demon hunter groaned and rolled his head on the pillow. "Five more minutes."

"You've had plenty of time to sleep Dante,"she said masking her relief with annoyance. "It's Lady."

Dante covered his eyes with the back of his arm and let out an annoyed grunt. "Not you."

Lady  _hmphed_  and folded her arms across her chest. Dante looked a little more human and less machine now that they'd removed most of the wires and plastic from his face. He still had a few wrapped around his arms and chest though.

"Good to see you too," she smiled at the moment she was simply happy he wasn't dead. She'd have to try and remind herself of that later when his behaviour was driving her towards homicide. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I was hit by a truck," Dante replied his voice dry. Well he assumed that this was what being hit by a truck felt like to a human. He'd experienced far worse with his powers in-tact. So it was really more like being stomped on by Godzilla a couple of times and then crushed by a falling Temin-Ni-Gru… yeah that about summed it up.

"Well you look like it too," Lady said softly though she was trying to ignore all the cuts and bruises and everything which made him look weak… human.

He attempted to lift the arm from his face but then lowered it again squeezing his eyes shut. "Geez could someone turn down the lights in this room?"

"Stop being a baby," Lady chastised glancing over her shoulder to check that the doctor was out of ear-shot with a patient across the room. "Dante, what happened to you back there?"

Even in his muddled state he sensed the change in he tone of her voice immediately. It was completely serious now and he lifted his arm slightly squinting to look at her in the bright light.

"Vergil," he ground out eyes clouded. He seemed to be suddenly realizing the extent at which the previous fight had affected him. Dante tried to sit up only for Lady to push him back down.

"Don't move you'll strain your injuries," she said in a calm don't-mess-with-me tone which he heeded. She watched the confusion furrow his brow as he rested back against the pillow and sighed.

"So I'm in hospital?" He had gathered that much by the smell. The stink of disinfectant was everywhere, and then there was the uncomfortable bed, the wires and that constant beeping which was going to drive him mad.

"Yeah," Lady replied softly. "It was really bad Dante, I thought…"

"Don't go getting all sentimental on me now," he pleaded flashing her a smile. "I'm alright, now I just wanna get out of here…"

"The doctors want to keep you here for another week at least," Lady informed him. A grimace marred his features; by then the little twerp who did this to him would be long gone. In fact he didn't even know how long he'd been out. He was about to ask when Lady seemed to sense the question and answer for him. "You've been here for about two days now; they kept you sedated for a while."

"Ah," he looked around him trying to get a better understanding of where he was though his head was still far too jumbled from the anaesthesia. "How'd I get here?" He knew he should be dead, he'd known he was a goner when he passed out the first time so he owed someone his life.

"Um," Lady bit her lip wondering if she should tell him the truth or not. She wasn't planning on telling him that Vergil was here until he was a bit more with it; she also had no idea how she'd tell him that she'd offered to let his homicidal twin stay at Devil May Cry. "Well… Vergil phoned an ambulance."

Dante's face was one of shock and confusion though there was something underlying all that which could have been slightly touched. Whatever it was the emotion was masked a moment later with a grimace. "Wait, how do you know?"

Dante once again tried to sit up only for Lady to shove him back down again, rather harshly, it made him wince.

"Hey watch it, invalid remember?" he protested annoyed at his own weak state. Normally a shove from her wouldn't move him half an inch, now she was strong enough to hold him down and keep him there. That in itself was worrying though for now he'd blame it on the fact that he wasn't completely himself, and under sedation.

Lady looked equally as surprised by her own strength. "Sorry," she grinned. "I guess you're just as weak as me now huh?"

"Yeah so you'd better watch that over-developed trigger finger of yours," he replied moodily. If they ever had an argument over something – which they did, often – then her normal way to end it would be to put a bullet between his eyes. That could have some serious consequences now.

"And you won't be able to swing that sword around like a manic the way you normally do," Lady commented thinking along the same lines as him. Both were beginning to realize the gravity of the situation and it was getting just that little bit worrying.

"When I get my hands on that little-"

"You saw him?" Lady asked hopefully.

"Yeah, why?" Dante asked quizzically studying her beneath the white bangs in his eyes.

Lady found herself looking away as she replied. "Vergil… said he didn't."

"You've seen him?" This time Dante did sit up and Lady wasn't fast enough to stop him. He gasped and wheezed a moment later, a hand instinctively wrapping around his waist when the pain flared up.

"Lie back down," Lady ordered and tried to help, but he brushed her off.

"I'm… fine," he took a deep breath. "Do you know where he is now?"

Lady nodded absently wanting to help Dante before he did himself some serious damage, like tear his lung back open. "He's in the relatives' room," she mumbled half hoping he wouldn't hear.

Dante blinked and tried to hide his surprise, still panting from the pain in his side. "In the… in the relatives' room?"

"Yes," Lady replied sharply. "For god's sake Dante lie down!"

"Alright," he gasped out resting gently back down on the bed, normally he wouldn't have done anything she ordered him to do willingly, but it hurt like hell. "Shit…"

"Well I told you to lie down," Lady said watching him unsympathetically.

"Yeah, yeah," Dante replied dismissively. It was far less painful lying down but it was annoying having to look up at her like this, it also made him feel even more like an invalid. "So my evil twin who wants my guts for garters is in the relatives' room… being a," he furrowed his brow, "relative?"

Lady rolled her eyes, "I know, it's weird, but he's the same as you. I don't think he wants to admit it but he needs your help. Do you want to see him?" Not that Vergil would come and see Dante anyway; he hadn't seemed all too keen on the idea before.

"No," Dante protested eyes clouding again. Oh yeah he'd love to see Vergil right now, his brother would probably just stand there and gloat. He didn't want to see Vergil until he had Rebellion in hand again, though the fact that Vergil had called the ambulance for him struck a chord somewhere deep down. That reminded him though… "Do you know where my weapons are?"

"Yeah I took them back to Devil May Cry," Lady replied she didn't want to go through everything she had had to do to get them back.

"Thanks," Dante smiled, he opened his mouth to speak again, but was cut off by the doctor who Lady hadn't noticed until he was standing right next to her. She had to stop herself from jumping.

"And how's the patient doing?" He asked in a very patronizing way.

Dante narrowed his eyes at the man. "Fine thanks."

Lady watched grinning as the doctor began unceremoniously testing all of Dante's vitals finishing by shining a light in each eye. By the end of the procedure she could see that he was a second from taking the guy's head off.

"Well you're looking fine, but I think some rest is in order now don't you?" the man asked a fake smile plastered on his face and that condescending tone still in his voice. "I'm just going to give you some more pain killers and you'll be off in no time." The look on Dante's face was comical; it was somewhere between rage and slight fear that this psychotically happy man was in charge of the medicine; and he was now administering it into the shunt on the back of Dante's hand. Lady felt slightly sorry for Dante, but she was still fighting down laughter.

"I'll see you later Dante," she grinned waving as his eyes slid closed in sleep.

"How was he?" Vergil asked absently staring into the swirling browns of his tea with a look of disdain when she returned to the room. They were the soul occupants this morning and she was glad of it, the less witnesses to his murder the better.

"Like you care," Lady snapped flopping down on one of the sofas and reaching for a magazine.

"He's my brother right?" Vergil responded looking at her across the top of his tea cup. He was really only using it to keep his hands warm, the stuff which came out of the machines here was disgusting.

"Then why didn't you come down and see him when he was awake?" Lady asked narrowing her eyes.

"He wouldn't have wanted me there," Vergil answered matter-of-factly. He knew his twin just that little bit too well sometimes. For all their differences they shared a few things in common and it was easy to tell that neither would want the other to see them in a weakened state. Even when they'd been children they'd try to act far stronger than the other which had often resulted in arguments. "Don't you have someone else to be playing psychiatrist for Mary?"

"Lady, my name's Lady," she replied a vein in her forehead twitching. "And no, you two are going to need to work together if you want your power back."

Well she'd hit the nail on the head there. She was right and he admitted it to himself somewhat begrudgingly. Without his power and only his skills as a warrior left everything had gone back to square one. He could of course still wield a sword, but every move, every trick which took some of his demonic power to accomplish had now disappeared and it would take some practice to get used to. Practice which he intended to start as soon as possible, sitting around here waiting was doing his head in.

"So where does my idiot brother live now? Still in that pig-sty?" Vergil asked sardonically changing the subject; he didn't want to think about his defeat by that little runt any longer than he had to.

Lady nodded, she had to admit Dante's office was indeed a pig-sty. "Yeah… I'm going back there later." She paused regarding Vergil warily. "Can I trust you if you come with me?"

Vergil sighed and put his cup down on the coffee table. "I suppose the question is as much 'do you want to leave me alone here?' than do you want to take me back there. And either way you still can't trust me not to do anything and you won't be able to watch me all the time."

Lady rolled her eyes. She wasn't sure which of the two brothers was worse. "In a nutshell."

"Then do you really have a choice?" Vergil asked smirking.

She grimaced. "I guess not."

* * *

Dante grunted and tried to roll over; he was stopped when he felt pain flare in his side. He blinked blearily into the electric lights above him and tried to remember where he was. The room was different, quieter too though there was still that annoying beeping noise. Then he noticed the plastic mask covering his nose and mouth and yanked it down irritably not having the strength to pull it over his head.

"How are you feeling sleepy head?" Lady's head appeared above him and he tried to ignore the scarily sweet tone in her voice.

"Just great thanks," he replied dryly rubbing sleep from his eyes. He glanced around, yep definitely a different room. "Where am I now?"

"They've moved you out of ICU and you've got your own little room now," Lady replied sitting back down in the chair by the bed where she had been keeping her vigil over him. There was a whirring sound and the bed tilted up slightly. "And now I can do this, which is just so much easier."

Dante was about to demand the controls so he could see just how far the bed would bend when he caught sight of a figure sitting in the corner of the cramped room.

He tensed, his eyes narrowed to slits and he balled a fist in the thin material which substituted as a duvet. "You."

His twin was sitting across the room in an arm-chair an open book rested in his lap. Dante was glad that he wasn't the only one who wasn't healing. Vergil's heavily bandaged shoulder was obvious through the shirt he was wearing and the bruising on his face had turned most of it an angry purple a split lip and broken nose clearly visible.

Vergil met his brother's gaze unfalteringly, the bruising probably made Vergil look even scarier rather than weaker. "What are you doing here? Come to gloat?"

His twin merely smiled which only served to infuriate Dante more and he turned to Lady in disgust. "What is  _he_  doing here?"

"I ran into him when I was waiting for you to come round," she paused glancing at Vergil. "And seeing as he has not given me his word that he'll stay where I tell him to I have no choice but to drag him around with me."

Dante's brow creased. Since when would Vergil allow himself to be subjected to being treated like that? Why would he listen to Lady at all? Unless it was just like what she had said in their earlier conversation though to be honest he was having trouble remembering. Vergil needed his help. The satisfaction of knowing that nearly made him forget that he was incapacitated in his twin's presence; almost.

"Ah, well I could hardly expect for you to just want to check up on me eh bro?" Dante queried feigning hurt, a fake smile stretched across his face. "Seeing as you were the one that put me here in the first place."

"You let that little twerp beat you Dante, not me," Vergil replied with a sneer. "How was I supposed to know what he had done?"

"It's not like it really matters, you were the one who decided we should do our brotherly bonding by trying to cut each other into confetti," Dante shot back glowering. He heard the heart rate monitor pick up a notch and that in itself made Dante want to smash the little box into a million pieces. Arguing with Vergil could not be stressing him out, but the machine appeared to believe otherwise and it had decided to tell everyone else in the room as well.

"Dante," there was a hint of warning in Lady's voice.

"Shut up," Dante snapped angrily, he turned back to Vergil "What the hell are you smiling about?"

"Just you Dante," Vergil replied in a bored tone his eyes turning back to the book in his lap.

"And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" Dante questioned angrily, his ire only fuelled by the place. Everything about this place was driving him mad, if he was back home with his guns and sword dealing with Vergil would be a damn bit easier. Instead he was lying barely able to move in some uncomfortable bed, in one of those horrible over-all things with wires and tubes just about everywhere and the god-damn beeping.

"Nothing," Vergil answered not looking up. "I have no time to make idle conversation with you and so if the only thing you're going to do is whine I'd much rather go back to doing something useful about this situation we're in."

Dante glared, but he had no more to say turning to stare at the opposite wall and trying to ignore the heart-rate monitor as it picked up frequency again. He hated to admit it, but everything seemed difficult; breathing especially though he was putting that down to the puncture lung rather than the loss of power.

"Maybe you should try and sleep," Lady put in after a minute. "The aesthetic has barely worn off and you need rest."

"I don't care what I  _need_  I  _want_  to get out," came the moody reply. "And if that whack-job doctor comes anywhere near me with anymore of that stuff then you can just forget about it. It hurts my head."

Vergil smirked. "You seemed to be enjoying it a while ago."

Dante threw a dark look at his twin. "What are you going on about now?"

"Watching you come round is rather amusing you wouldn't believe half the stuff that comes out of your mouth," Vergil grinned thoroughly enjoying the horrified look on his brother's face.

"Shut up," Dante hissed and tried to ignore his twin. Why had he ever wanted Vergil back from hell? He could just go back and stay there Dante would give him a good old shove next time.

"Dante breathe," Lady instructed and he was about to inform her that he was breathing when she pulled the mask back down over his face. He shot her the same glare he'd given Vergil. Trying to remain dignified in this situation was very hard when you had someone constantly mothering you. He took a few breaths to satisfy her then pulled the mask back down again.

"So what's the plan then?" He asked and the both knew what he was referring to.

"Well Vergil's trying to find out how that demon stole your powers and if it's reversible," Lady replied thoughtfully. "And I'm…" she shrugged, "well I haven't been much help."

Dante peered at the book his brother was reading trying to get a good look at it without Vergil noticing. It was demonic writing; he had expected as much and knew that was probably why Lady hadn't been of much help. Vergil would spend days reading books until he found what he was looking for and then divulge the information to them as he wished. That again was always a risk with him, his twin could hold back anything he liked from them and there'd be no way to tell if he was lying or not.

"So Verg you found anything?" Dante asked nonchalantly as he tried to read the writing upside down. It didn't matter that he couldn't even read the language to begin with he could pick out the occasional word which he just remembered from child-hood.

"I'll tell you if I find anything of value," Vergil answered frostily not looking up.

Dante frowned and rested back against the mattress boredom already creeping into his mind. How much more of this would he have to take? He wanted to get out  _now_  even if his body was in no condition to be moved.

"Dante if you're going to sleep put the mask back on," Lady instructed him and he narrowed his eyes at her. Since when was she the doctor? He turned his head away from her and sighed his tired body finding sleep far quicker than he had anticipated.

* * *

_A/N: Okay I have no excuses, well I do to an extent, however all I can say is my life has calmed down a bit now so I hope I can get back into my fanfiction again as I truly miss writing. More soon hopefully!_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Dante was settling into living in hospital nicely, of course he would have preferred to be at home and to be allowed pizza and beer, but they had ice cream. He'd also found out that if he pressed a button on the side of his bed someone had to come and tend to him. More often than not that someone was one of the rather good-looking nurses from downstairs. They didn't seem to mind looking after him either so as far as Dante could tell it was a win win situation. That was until one of the elder nurses obviously cottoned on and stopped them coming so much. He'd had a nasty shock when he'd expected to see that gorgeous blonde again and had been met by the hard stare of some old bag. What was more she had then insisted on taking his blood pressure and he swore she had been trying to seriously damage his arm.

She couldn't always be the one to check on him though, Dante had also figured out which times his favourite nurses worked and he had goaded the one currently with him into giving him a back massage. Hadn't been hard really, he grinned, this one obviously couldn't get enough of him.

His peace and quiet didn't last long however when the door banged open and Lady stormed in her bad mood only intensifying when she saw the pretty blonde looking after Dante and the devil hunter's smug expression.

"What are you doing?" She snapped closing the door and rounding on Dante.

"My back hurt, Lou-"

"Sara," the nurse put in not seeming to mind he'd gotten the wrong name.

 _Cheap slut_ , Lady thought disgusted.

Dante's smile broadened. "Sara was giving me a massage," he winked and pressed back into the girl behind him closing his eyes in bliss.

His eyes shot open in pain a second later when Lady grabbed his hair and forced him to look at her.

"Aw why didn't you just ask me sweetie?" She asked feigning concern and seriously worrying the demon hunter who swallowed slowly.

"You didn't hit your head did you?"

Lady smiled sweetly though there was an undertone of evil to it. "No, I'm perfectly fine, but you need taking care off and these nurses have a job to do." She glared at Sara who seemed to take the hint and stood up.

Dante gave the girl an apologetic smile, truly sad she was leaving though slightly glad to be rid of the company; she knew far too much about shoes for his liking.

He winked. "See you later babe," and the hand in his hair tightened considerably.

"Ow!"

"Still want that back massage?" Lady asked shifting to stand behind him; she was above sitting on the bed.

"From you? No not rea-OW!"

He tried to wriggle away, but she held him still kneading the strained muscles on his back with a strength which would bruise later if she didn't let up.

"Bloody hell stop it already," he moaned in pain trying to shove her off and failing. She was surprisingly strong now that he had none of his demonic strength – scarily strong; though hopefully it had something to do with the fact that he wasn't one hundred percent himself.

"Hey I'm an invalid you know?" He winced as she continued on oblivious of his complaints. "Ah stop! Geez what's wrong with you?"

She did stop then and moved back round to glare at him with her bi-coloured eyes. "What's wrong with me? What's wrong with  _you_? I'm not the one wasting people's valuable time by trying to get off with the nurses! And you're  _supposed_  to be resting!"

A grin twisted the corner of Dante's lips growing wider and obviously at her expense. "Aw, Lady, I didn't think you were the jealous type."

She punched him in the arm; hard.

"Ow!"

He rested back against his pillows folding his arms looking sullen and glaring at her acting like a child who'd just had their favourite toy confiscated.

"You wanna go get me some food?" He asked eventually knowing that it annoyed Lady to have to do anything for him now that his being bed-ridden was merely a formality. Well at least from his attitude it seemed to be though she knew it was unadvisable for him to be wandering around.

Dante groaned and he grinned wolfishly. "Or I could call that nurse back-"

"I'll get it, I'll get it," Lady replied quickly rising to her feet. Dante had her in a bind there and she knew it. She was seriously considering disconnecting his 'emergency' call button.

Dante sighed heavily and glanced at the walls he had seen for more or less the past six days. It was alright here when Lady was there to keep him company, or with the nurses around to entertain him, but when visiting hours were over and the nurses' shifts ended it was plain dull. He hated to admit it, but he knew that he wasn't ready to leave yet. Moving, even rolling onto one side hurt and getting up to tend to bodily functions was nearly impossible (hobbling around in the over-alls was also possibly one of the most humiliating things he'd ever had to do). Dante was beginning to appreciate just how much his demonic powers had given him, healing at this rate was a complete pain in the ass.

Speaking of pains in the ass one had just walked through the door. Vergil would often appear with Lady or shortly after carrying a new book. Then he would proceed to sit in a chair in the corner and read completely ignoring his twin. Vergil mares well have stayed at Devil May Cry unless Lady had decided that he couldn't be left alone.

"Well hello to you too," Dante grumbled folding his arms and staring at his twin waiting to see any signs of acknowledgment from his brother. None came. "It wouldn't kill you to be a bit more talkative you know."

What Vergil did next Dante had most certainly not expected. Vergil normally ignored all of his attempts at striking up conversation and kept focused on his book. This time Vergil was up in a flash and at the side of the bed so fast that Dante could have sworn he had teleported though he knew it to be impossible. He hadn't seen Vergil move from point a to point b and now his brother's eyes were staring right into his their faces centimetres apart. Dante resisted the urge to gulp and tried to look anywhere but his brother's face, Vergil's eyes were on fire and he was half expecting to get hit by the sparks.

"Now let me get this straight Dante," Vergil hissed pulling back a little though his gaze only intensified, "because you're obviously deluded for some reason. I may be your brother, but I am  _not_  your friend. I won't hesitate to kill you if you get in my way."

"Yeah like you did the last time," Dante shot back he should have been expecting this speech from Vergil at some point but it still stung somewhere he thought didn't exist anymore. "Or do you not remember that I beat you, did that just slip your mind? And you're calling me deluded."

Vergil's lips curled into a sneer and he rested a hand on Dante's chest, Dante thought it had been inadvertent until pain seared through his side. He gasped and his eyes snapped shut, he forced them open a second later trying to remain impassive though it was almost impossible when Vergil applied more pressure to the wound. He didn't want to show that it hurt; reacting in any way would tell Vergil that he really was human, but his clenched fist was shaking as he fought the urge to smack his brother across the face.

"That was a slip up it won't happen again," he replied grinding his fingers into the stitching beneath the light hospital shirt. Dante had to bite his lip to stop a feeble cry escaping. He tried to shove his twin off, but the attempt was stopped as Vergil knocked him back and dug his fingers into the healing skin. It hurt, it really shouldn't have, but it did and he glared at Vergil trying to find his brother again in the steely gaze. "And I will kill you Dante once I have my power back; let me assure you of that."

Dante cried out as the stitches ripped open and Vergil smirked jabbing his fingernails into the wound one last time before pulling back.

"You son of a-"

Vergil raised an eyebrow and stopped Dante from finishing. Of course Dante wasn't going to insult their mother, which was why it was amusing to watch him quite literally choke on the words.

"Quit smiling, I'm bleeding you bastard!" Dante yelled at him a hand clutched over the wound. It wasn't bad compared to what he normally got, but he knew that he should be far more worried about the warm substance quickly soaking through the overalls. That and no matter how minor the wound seemed the pain was worse.

Dante wasn't entirely sure whether Lady's return just at that moment was helpful or not. At least she had the sense to press the emergency button which Dante had completely forgotten about. Thanks to his constant abuse of the system it took quite a while for a nurse to arrive and for once Dante was glad it was one of the elder more professional ones. Not the scary one though, he could bet she'd have let him bleed to death.

It didn't take all that long for the stitches to be re-done, but the whole time Dante was seething. He wanted to wipe that smug smile off his brother's face, but that was rather difficult when he was like this. Vergil was wounded too, but he doubted that he could use that to his advantage in the condition he was in.

His twin continued to gloat over him the whole time whilst they stitched him up. He tried to ignore it but something uneasy was knotting his stomach. Vergil had the upper hand here. Not only was he in a better condition than Dante he had knowledge at his disposal which Dante did not. Sure Vergil may not have been strong enough to take on the demon that had attacked them by himself, but Dante knew that whether he helped Vergil or not in the end it would come down to a fight between them again. He could tell Vergil knew this too, his brother would never willingly give him back his half of their power and so either way it would come down to a struggle. They needed to work together for now, Dante kept on trying to remind himself that.

When the nurses left Lady wanted answers her penetrating gaze flicking between the two before coming to rest on Dante. "What happened?"

Dante glanced over to his twin but Vergil was sitting back in the corner with his book. He should have hit Vergil when he was in close range…

"I was being… over-active," Dante replied as way of explanation. He wasn't planning on telling her the truth and he had a feeling Vergil knew that he wouldn't. "Just tried to get out of bed too fast and tore them open that's all."

She seemed satisfied with that and turned lifting up a tray of something before placing it across his lap. "There's your food."

Dante stared morosely into the sea of green goo which had once been vegetables and poked it tentatively with his spoon. He was beginning to remember why he shouldn't ask Lady to get him food; she'd probably picked out the most 'healthy' thing for him.

"What on earth is this?" He asked not even bothering to try it. "Don't they have normal food?"

"It's soup and it's healthy," Lady answered matter-of-factly.

Dante raised an eyebrow and lifted his spoon from the gunge watching as the viscid liquid slowly dripped in strings back into the bowl. "Yeah, healthy…"

* * *

A few days later Lady lead a disgruntled demon slayer through the doors of Devil May Cry. Dante thanked her as she opened the door leaning heavily on a crutch thankful the doctors had bi-passed the idea of a wheel-chair.

His mood soured immediately once the door of his shop closed and his eyes adjusted to the dingy lights. Vergil was sitting at  _his_  desk, on  _his_  chair with his feet propped up on the polished mahogany. A growl started low in his throat. Vergil didn't even look up as he entered, Dante knew he was baiting him and that he shouldn't rise to the challenge, but he couldn't help it.

"Out," he hissed, it had meant to sound threatening, but with the crutches he probably just looked pathetic. At least he had something to beat Vergil over the head with.

Vergil raised his gaze from the book in his lap, but apart from that he barely flinched. "Excuse me?"

"Out," Dante repeated the ire dripping from his voice. He felt Lady tense besides him, he didn't care. "Get out; get out of my shop before I throw you out."

"Now Dante I hardly think you should be exerting yourself in your condition," Vergil commented idly turning a page.

"I don't give a shit," Dante growled moving into the room and throwing the crutches down with a clatter. He didn't need them, he wasn't an invalid, he wasn't human and if Vergil needed throwing out he'd be happy to oblige. "Now haul your ass out that door and get on with your life as far away from me as possible!"

That got Vergil's attention. The elder twin let his booted feet drop to the floor with a thud; he closed his book with a contrasting quietness and slid it onto the desk. Lady was still standing at the door transfixed, she knew a storm was coming and she saw no way to prevent it. She remembered what had happened the last time she got in between these two. But now... now could they really hurt her like before? Should she intervene...?

"So you want to fight Dante? You can handle all this on your own is that it?" Vergil asked sardonically as he stood from the stuffed leather chair. The pair were only meters away now and the tension in the room was growing steadily with Vergil's every word. "I don't  _want_  to be here, that little...  _girl-_ "

"Watch your mouth," Lady glowered finally moved from her frozen position by the door.

"Oh both as hot tempered as each other," Vergil smiled turning to face Lady, "well aren't you two the happy couple. You deserve each other and if," he glanced back to Dante, "if you don't want my help then that's fine. I'm gone."

"Vergil," Lady hissed. She could see the situation unfolding before her, but she was powerless to stop it.

"What?" The elder twin snapped, "you still need my help?"

"No we don't," Dante interjected. "Get out."

"Dante," Lady groaned. "We need him, if you can't see that-"

"We don't need him Lady, the only thing we need is-"

"You Dante? The crippled demon slayer?" Vergil laughed condescendingly and staring his twin down. Oh he loved baiting his brother; he had almost forgotten how fun it was.

"Shut up," Dante growled. "Just shut up. You leave I have nothing more to say."

He stopped, folded his arms, but he felt his body tensing under the strain. He hated Vergil he remembered that now and wished he could take back all those times he had regretted maybe even mourned his twin's plunge into hell. Now he would throw Vergil off that waterfall himself.

Vergil paused then straightened a crease from his shirt. "Well if you wish," he grimaced, "it's not like I  _want_  to stay here in this pig-sty. Some of us however understand that we have to be civil to one another-"

"We'll be fine without you thanks," Dante cut his brother off resting against the desk in a nonchalant fashion successfully hiding the fact that his body was maybe not fighting fit quite yet.

The corner of Vergil's mouth quirked awkwardly like he couldn't make up his mind as to whether he should smile or spit; deciding on neither he bent slowly in a way which made both Lady and Dante flinch in case he would attack; instead he simply picked up a worn bag from the floor. "I'll be leaving then." Vergil said brusquely, but as he reached the door Vergil he paused his hand resting on the handle. "Shame really it just doesn't seem right returning home by myself. You know the old place is still there Dante?"

"Yeah," Dante grunted then his head snapped round to look at Vergil. "Wait... what?"

"Oh I don't suppose you'd remember it, just the mansion where we spent the first eight years of our lives," Vergil said sardonically raising an eyebrow at his twin.

"It burned down," Dante said his tone clipped. He wasn't liking where this was going. He didn't need Vergil in his life anymore. His brother always did this, screwed everything up and messed him around baiting him with scraps of their past.

"Well I can understand that since you were traumatised you probably wouldn't remember it..."

"Don't pull that crap on me Verge! That place burned to the ground I  _saw_  it," Dante snarled he was ready for a fight again. He would drag Vergil down to the ground with him if his legs didn't support him for the whole thing.

"You obviously didn't because if you did you would know only half the house was damaged irreparably. But I suppose you spent the whole time hiding in a cupboard so I don't blame you if your memory is a little vague."

The words had barely left Vergil's lips when Dante flew at him. In an instance Vergil had drawn Yamato on instinct and Dante ducked snatching up one of his crutches from the ground and swiping Vergil's legs out from under him. Vergil went head over heels and smashed to the ground completely surprised by his twin's sudden move and feeling the effect of his slowed reflexes. Dante raised the crutch for a strike, but instead his body buckled and he cried out in pain the crutch clattering to the ground as he fell onto his hands and knees.

Lady had seen enough. She drew a gun, stepping in between the brothers before their fighting could continue.

"Lady," Dante growled seeing her standing between him and his twin. The gun swung to point at him. "Put that away and let me finish him."

"You think you could possibly beat me?" Vergil snarled having regained himself somewhat, his hand moving for his sword.

Lady kicked Yamato out of his reach. "This is pathetic! Both of you look at yourselves."

Dante's gaze dropped from the gun to glare across at his brother. Perhaps she was right; they would kill each other fighting like this let along that demon.

"Woman move out of my way," Vergil hissed not liking that he had been outsmarted by his brother or that he was being forced into submission by a girl

"Look Verge," Dante sighed, he was going to regret saying this for the rest of his life. "I'm sorry okay I over-reacted, but we've gotta kill that sonovuabitch who stole our powers... and if that means working with you so be it."

Vergil smirked. "That's awfully grown up of you Dante."

"I've had a lot of growing up to do." Dante glanced back up at Lady. "Put the gun away okay babe? We got the point."

Lady eyed them both suspiciously then holstered the gun moving away towards Dante's other crutch and picking it up. "So this mansion of yours...?"

"It's still standing," Vergil replied standing up and dusting himself off. "At least the parts I'm interested in."

"And what are you interested in Verge?" Dante asked pulling himself to his feet in a less fluid motion than he would have liked. He leant heavily on his heels watching his twin from the corner of one eye.

Vergil swallowed, it was more information than he wanted to divulge, but he supposed he would have to. Still talking about his old life always put him on edge. "Father's library," he explained. "We need an entrance to the demon world..."

"And since Temin-ni-gru is a permanent fuck up I guess you need a new key huh?" Dante asked raising an eyebrow.

Vergil nodded. "Something like that."

"Right then," Lady grinned making her way to the desk and leaning over it in order to fish a set of keys out of Dante's draw. "I'm driving."

"What?" Dante's eyes widened as he turned to her. "It's my car."

"Well you're too injured," Lady replied straightening up and twirling the key-ring around her finger. "And you," she jabbed her hand towards Vergil, "can you even drive?"

Vergil opened his mouth to respond then closed it again. "I can, but I suspect you would need someone to navigate."

"Good, let's get going then," Lady announced stalking past the pair to the door.

"Hey wait," Dante protested as Vergil began to follow Lady. "Why does he get to navigate?"

"I trust him not to get way-laid by his stomach," Lady replied smiling.

"But-"

"Come on Dante," Vergil smirked. "Or we'll leave without you."

* * *

A/N: OMFG update much? Who knows when you'll see another - all I can say is NaNoWriMo soon.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The mansion was both hard and easy to recognise after all these years. Of course the fact that half of it was scorched timbers and rubble didn't help. Dante was left struck by the vividness of his own emotions as the arched roofs came into view beyond the tree-line. His childhood memories of this place were vivid, but blurred and distorted; dream-like. As he once again looked upon his old home – perhaps one of the only homes he had ever had, he realised that it was both recognisable and alien. Something about it had changed – perhaps in that night of destruction so many years ago. Now... now he could not help but feel uneasy as he stared at the mansion. It was like looking someone in the eye for too long and then finding yourself unable to look away. You couldn't ignore something like that, not when it was staring you in the face and he was pretty sure it would show cowardice to do so. He didn't want to seem weak in front of Vergil, but to be honest he couldn't be bothered to even glance at his brother. His own feelings were enough to keep him occupied.

As the car pulled to a halt before the main gate the bloody half-light of the setting sun flashed like fire through fractured glass and danced on glittering mirrors and chandeliers casting the mansion in a sudden fresco of flame. Dante shuddered. Oh he had been to hell and back, but suddenly he felt very young, very small again. Those memories, the ones he thought he had thrown away years ago they were still here waiting to crawl out of the woodwork and haunt him. How much of this could he take? He knew this shock was natural; he hadn't seen his child-hood home since that night, but he hated himself for it. Still in an instant the feelings were bottled below safely away and Lady was offering him a hand to help him out of the car.

"Did the ride put you to sleep?" Lady asked smiling and not unkindly; perhaps she knew how he felt.

"Something like that," Dante mumbled feeling that it would not be weak to take her hand and allow her to guide him from the red convertible. Besides if he could stake his claim on Lady over Vergil so much the better. Vergil tried to win everything even the things he didn't want and the last thing he wanted was  _both_  of them ganging up on him.

Dante looked across at Vergil wondering idly what they should do next, but his brother seemed oddly pensive staring up blankly at the burnt out shell of a house with one of his bloody books clutched in hand. Perhaps Vergil's mind was going through the same bizarre process Dante's own had. For some reason Dante didn't feel like interrupting him. Instead he turned back to the house attempting to look at it just as it was. A mansion, half-standing; the right wing mostly just a bare black skeleton. Rubble and timber had washed up in the coves of the corners and the forest had crept inside making its home amongst rotten floor-boards as ivy twisted slowly up the frayed walls.

Had they been lucky that the right wing had housed most of their belongings? Now that Dante thought about it it seemed to be a blessing. He had not mourned his old things once his family was gone. That life had somehow been much easier to leave when there were no longer material possessions to tie him down to it. Besides his twin had been his favourite plaything; he had never been able to play without his big brother...

"So what's the plan Verg?" Dante asked attempting to sound jovial as he broke the silence.

"We need to go to father's library," Vergil responded slowly fingering the leather bindings of the tome in his hands.

Dante's brows knitted in confusion. "Isn't there a minor problem there?"

"I really don't see how," Vergil answered with a cold tone. He wished that he had been allowed to come here by himself, to pick through the ruins and his memories at his leisure.

"Dad's library was in the right wing, did you forget that?" Dante asked folding his arms. His body was still stiff, but he was beginning to feel like he could stand on his own again... which was good considering they would have to pick their way through a decayed mansion.

Vergil smiled sourly at his brother leaning back into the convertible to grab Yamato and secure the blade to his belt. "Just leave it to me Dante."

"Verg-"

But Vergil had already started down the gravel track towards the house leaving Dante to fold his arms, huff in exasperation and then finally lean back into the car (with some difficulty) to retrieve his guns. Rebellion was, as much as he hated to admit it, far too heavy for him in his weakened state. He hoped that when he was fighting fit again he would be able to wield the blade. Dante wouldn't much fancy going into hell without his most trusted friend.

Lady remained silent throughout the whole affair not knowing what to say. This felt like trespassing into some memory of Dante's which she had never been allowed. She had, for some reason, always imagined Dante growing up in a ghetto – which she supposed he had for a while. Here though, in a mansion? Dante didn't strike her as the spoiled little brat who might have lived here with nothing to want for. She imagined polished silver, fine dining and pressed dress shirts. It made her want to laugh, but it also set a deep unease inside her. Did she know either of these men? Could you ever know anyone so completely when there would always be fractions of their lives you could not possibly share...?

Their footsteps along the path cut through the silent calm of the forest as the three silhouettes made their way to the crumbling front door. One of the double doors had been torn off its hinges – possibly by robbers – the other was rusted shut.

"Kinda creepy huh?" Dante commented as they reached the door and peered into the darkness beyond. The last faint rays of sunlight crept through the doorway catching fragments of dust as they danced through the sliver of light frozen in time for a second and then gone.

"Yeah," Lady breathed finally finding her voice. "This... was your home?"

"Once," Dante answered. "Not anymore." He moved forwards to hold the rotten door aside. "After you Verg."

"Really Dante I thought we were past nicknames?" Vergil asked disdainfully as he ducked beneath his brother's arm and entered the mansion.

"Well," said Dante as Lady followed his brother. "I just thought you might find it endearing."

"I didn't like that name when we were  _children_ ," Vergil spat back. Lady flinched she didn't want another argument and Vergil's voice had suddenly filled with frost.

"Jeez and I thought we were being nice," Dante mumbled finally entering the building and allowing the door to crumble behind him with the sharp crack of splintering wood. The harsh sounds broke throughout the quiet of the house. Somewhere a room or so away there was the fluttering sound of disgruntled birds.

"Do you believe in being quiet?" Vergil asked exasperated. His brows were knitted in concentration as he studied the layout of the hallway conjuring up some ancient memory.

"No, do you believe in not being a dick-"

"All right for god's sake let's get through this without arguments shall we?" Lady hissed stepping between the two. "Where do we need to go?" She directed the question to Vergil hoping it would distract him from Dante's attack.

"Follow me," Vergil replied with a twitch of his mouth fighting to let his brother's comment slide. Lady nodded and hoisted Kalina-Ann on her back a common twitch when she was anxious. Vergil strode briskly across the hallway then ascended the stairs slowly but certainly undeterred by the groans of protest from the old wood. The whole house seemed as though it might turn into dust any second, but it had held this long, Vergil was certain it could last a little longer. Besides once he made his way to where he was going the house could dissipate for all he cared. In fact the sooner it was gone the better; he didn't need memories.

"Verg-"

"What Dante?" Vergil snapped wheeling on the stairs.

"Dad's library is on the  _ground floor_  in the  _west wing_ ," he put emphasis on the words carefully wondering if his twin was really  _that_  forgetful as his arms waved idly in the direction of the now obliterated west wing.

"That was not father's library," Vergil replied matter-of-factly then turned on his heel and continued up the ancient staircase. It was grand and wide easily enough for the three of them to walk abreast though that was most unwise. Once upon a time a red velvet carpet had lined the middle of the dark wood now it was only blackened scraps and moth-eaten threads.

Dante paused then blinked in confusion, "What?"

"Just follow me Dante," Vergil said smugly.

"No just wait Verg-"

"Don't call me that," the elder twin cut in through clenched teeth finally reaching the first floor landing. The house suddenly seemed to go still as though Vergil were about to boil over again. Lady felt herself swallow heavily. This place, this half-eaten house was somewhat dream-like the danger of a battle between the twins seemed surreal, childish amongst this destruction.

"Whatever, just Vergil, what...?" The younger twin asked stupidly.

"Did you really think father would let us anywhere near his most valuable possessions? Things which could destroy worlds? Do you think anyone in their right mind would leave such things anywhere within your grasp?" Vergil hissed condescendingly.

"Okay okay jeez don't blow a fuse," Dante groaned rolling his eyes then shrugged. "Lead the way."

They moved through the mansion in a strange silence; Vergil barely pausing as he followed the winding corridors Lady carefully minding holes in the floor and Dante strangely distant for once lost in thought.

The East Wing was still in semi-good shape and increasingly so as they moved away from the centre of the house. Lady could see the grandeur the brothers had once lived in. The ornate panelling, the intricate carvings of golden doorknobs; every inch of this house spoke of a long-lost glamour – a life of nobility and honour. This was what the world had had in mind for the sons of Sparda... and yet they had ended up so far from the grace of this previous life.

Eventually Vergil came to a halt at a set of double heavy looking double doors cut out of a dark wood. He reached out a hand slowly as though the occasion was momentous in some way and tried the handle. The old metal rattled, but didn't budge.

"Locked Verg?" Dante grinned as his brother bent down to inspect the keyhole.

"You should be glad it is brother, we want this place in-tact," Vergil commented idly.

"Well yes, but now we want this door," Dante aimed a kick at the old wood and despite his injuries and human strength the wood splintered and came away. He smiled smugly and hid the pain which flared up his side. It didn't matter the cost to see his brother's horrified face as Dante's foot passed centimetres from his head. "Open."

Obviously his brother didn't find this amusing as he had rounded on him in a second. "If you do anything like that again-"

"Hey hey hey," Dante held up his hands defensively. "You wanted door open – door's open."

Vergil swallowed an insult and turned back to the room taking a breath before pushing the broken wood aside. "Thanks," he muttered dryly.

Dante grinned at Lady who rolled her eyes in exasperation. Sure his method's were effective, but subtle – not so much.

They entered the room in turn with Dante bringing up the rear still mindful of the ancient floor. Lady had been expecting shelves stacked high to the ceiling, glass cabinets filled with trinkets and long lost treasures. Instead the room was barren. There was an ancient mahogany desk sprawled beneath a grand picture window. Light bled in through the tattered curtains catching dust particles as they floated serenely through the room settling on the desk, the rug, little else – for there was little else in the room.

"Um Verg—il," Dante quickly finished off his brother's name before Yamato separated his neck from his shoulders. He swallowed as his brother turned to look at him. "You do know this room is um...  _empty_  right?"

Before Vergil could retort or think of decapitating his twin there was a bark of laughter from the darkness. Immediately they were on edge Lady swung Kalina Ann up onto her hip, Vergil loosened his sword and Dante raised his guns. There was silence, it wasn't so dark that it was impossible to see, but there was nothing there...

"I spy with my little eye..."

Dante twitched, span around, the sound had moved, but he recognised that voice. That same sardonic drawl...

"Quit with the parlour tricks and show yourself you fucker," the younger twin growled his blood boiling inside of him.

"I see you're both getting accustomed to your new... lifestyle... how's it going? You feeling a little weaker—" Dante keeled over as something smashed into the back of his legs; he heard them crack, felt his body buckle and bow under the sudden assault "– around the knees, a little slower—" this time Vergil stumbled, Yamato's hilt snatched from his right hand, pulled from its sheath. He caught himself just before he fell into the tip, now turned on him, pointed at his jugular "—on the uptake?"

"Sonuva-" Dante hissed hauling himself to his knees as the demon finally came into view materialising out of darkness and smoke as he took Vergil's sword.

"Nice to see you again too," the demon nodded casually to the slayer still with the sword pressed against Vergil's neck. Lady flinched, gritted her teeth and reached a hand behind her slowly for her gun.

"Uh uh uh," the demon wagged a finger disapprovingly his snake-like eyes gleaming the neatly combed hair fluttering about his face. Vergil tried to pull away, but the demon's arm – eyes never leaving Lady – merely followed him, cut into the smooth skin of his neck. "One wrong move and your guide goes bye bye." He shrugged, glanced to Dante. "Not that it matters really, you always wanted your brother dead didn't you? How would you like to see his insides?"

"Fuck you," Vergil snarled eyes gleaming bright in the darkness. He didn't like being caught off-guard. He didn't like this sudden feeling of helplessness.

"Yes yes," the demon nodded grinning too happy with a face too young for the eyes which spoke of slaughter and evil. "You who bested me so last time I'm sure you'll do an amazing job of failing again."

Vergil snarled, his eyes blazed, but he was still – he was trapped.

In the sudden silence there was the metallic click of Ivory's hammer being drawn back. Perhaps the demon had under-estimated his opponents after all. "You fucking touch him and I unload a clip in your face," Dante hissed his breathing ragged his mind working furiously.

"Hmm it appears we're at an impasse then," the demon drawled. His lips twitched into a smirk, then he span, round-housed Vergil in the chest and sent him careering into Lady. The two clattered to the floor with a crash. Dante fired, but his shots struck the wooden desk, the fireplace, anything but his target and within less than half a round the demon was on him pinning him into the rotten floor-boards with Yamato's blade against his throat.

"How does it feel to be so helpless?" The demonic smile was centimetres from Dante's face; he could smell the stench of his breath like rotting flesh.

"I'll kill you," Dante hissed.

The demon's smile grew ever more strained, ever more grotesque. "Oh I count on it." Then in one fluid impossible movement he righted himself just as Vergil hauled Lady up and she pointed a gun in Dante's direction. The demon darted away swung Yamato like a walking cane mocking them. He didn't need the sword to kill them all, Lady knew that, the twins were too stubborn to believe it – or too used to being immortal. Lady felt Vergil's grip on her arms tighten, he had obviously forgotten she was perfectly able to stand on her own two feet. Once she would have been afraid, now she was oddly thankful.

"Now it seems we have a... problem," the creature weighed up his words before continuing. "I am not allowed to kill you anymore. My master had other... uses for the pair of you, but as for this little lady," he commented pointing Yamato's tip to where Lady stood Vergil still holding her up by the shoulders. "Nothing was ever mentioned about you."

Dante's eyes widened, he jack-hammered onto his feet from his position on the floor feeling the stitches across his chest tighten in protest. He rounded on the demon raising a gun. "Leave her alone or I fucking swear you will be sorry."

"She's a big girl Dante I don't think she needs you to be talking for her," the demon jeered twirling Yamato's point into the wooden floor. "Besides what could you do to save her?"

Before the younger twin could answer the demon smacked the palm of his hand directly onto the flat of Yamato's hilt. There was a crack as the sword shot clean through the wooden boards, renting a hole in the floor, the boards around snapping and cracking like ice. For the third time that day Dante's feet went out from under him and with a cry of surprise he crashed down to the marble dining-room floor below landing with a grunt.

"Dante!" Lady cried as the dust settled and there was no movement from the hunter below. The fall had knocked him out cold; she could just see his prone form through the hole in the floor Ivory lax in his grasp. She broke free of Vergil's hold and fired her pistol. The bullets made contact, two in the chest, one in the leg, but the demon didn't flinch.

Instead he spat blood and turned slitted yellow eyes upon her. "You think your pathetic weapon could hurt me?" the creature drawled wiping the back of a pale hand across his mouth smearing a trail of crimson over porcelain flesh. "Oh how quaint."

He dashed across the room lightning fast snatched Lady's gun arm and squeezed. She cried out, her gun slipped from her fingers. "I'm not a half-blood like these scum my dear I'm the real thing. You really think you've stood up to demons before?"

"If you're a  _real_  demon," Lady snarled her eyes bright in the darkness. Her free hand slid down to hang at her hip, reaching for her holstered scorpion. He was wrong, she had stood up to demons – demons like her father, demons like Vergil and Dante; she knew how much they loved the sound of their own voice. "Give their powers back, fight fair – you're just a coward."

The demon cocked his head slightly, gave her a lopsided grin. "Touché, and yet you are the one who has stood up against me the most tonight. These two simpletons are getting their – what's the expression? – arses kicked."

"I've had experience," Lady replied matter-of-factly then flung her arm up and fired barely inches from the creature's chest. There was a roar of pain and he threw her away like a rag doll. She hit the wall with a thud and a cloud of dust, the world swimming. Moments, precious moments were wasted on staying conscious.

"Leave her out of this," that was Vergil, she heard the growl somewhere off somewhere faint. When she finally focused she could see that he was doing his best to drive an old fire poker through the creature's neck. And sadly – failing. The demon was mocking him with a quirked smile, but Lady could see the ice in the elder twin's eyes. Somewhere she was thankful for that. Still there was barely a moment when Vergil had the creature pinned with the soot-caked poker pressed against the demons neck.

The creature raised a quizzical eyebrow in mock concern. "And what exactly were you planning on doing with that."

"I will end you," Vergil hissed eyes flashing. His grip tightened his body tensed ready for a killing blow and then the demon grabbed the poker, wrenched it from the elder twin's hand and smacked him across the back of the head with it.

Vergil slumped forwards conscious but suddenly dazed and unable to keep control of himself. The demon kicked his prone from away and Vergil groaned as his ribs cracked. Out of the corner of his watering eyes he saw the thing running at Lady she shouted, fired and then they both collided with the fireplace – only there was no blood or broken bone. Just at the moment they made contact with the wall the pair vanished into thin air leaving Vergil to collect himself from the floor-boards.

For a moment he sat on his knees staring blankly at the ornate fireplace. Lady was gone. He had been supposed to protect her and now she was gone. He didn't care about the woman oh no, but he did care about his duty and honour. Right then and there he should have protected her. She should not have been involved in this. The younger twin sighed, rubbed his temples and then turned on his knees to inspect the hole in the floor. He peered over the edge tentatively wondering what had happened to his brother, but most importantly his sword.

"Verg," Dante groaned from the rubble below rubbing a shaking hand through his matted hair.

"Yes Dante," Vergil replied with a bored tone for once letting the nick-name slide.

"What—what?"

"Don't ask," Vergil knew what his brother was going to say, he didn't want to have to explain however. How on earth was he going to admit to Dante that he'd lost Lady? For once he almost felt guilt.

"But Verg-"

"Don't call me that," Vergil finally snapped rising to his feet. "Now get your ass up here Dante – and don't forget my sword."

* * *

_A/N: You may get a chapter a year. I so want to finish this story I had so many ideas. We'll see if it's ever finished. In the mean time reviews are nice :)_

-Luce _  
_

 


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

"Where's Lady?"

The question hung heavily in the air for several seconds, lingering with the dust particles that swam silently into the beams of pale light which spilled across the floor and swirled down through the ragged hole where Dante had fallen not ten minutes ago. The question itself held little significance; Dante knew where Lady was, or wasn't. She wasn't  _here_  which meant she was beyond their reach, probably with that demonic brat, possibly being tortured as they spoke. The idea sent a sharp shudder up his spine. And Vergil was just standing there, with his back to him, staring blankly at the ornate fireplace before him. Dante's hand tightened on Yamato's hilt – his brother's sword, now he wished he had left it for Vergil to retrieve himself.

"Verg?"

Even the dreaded nickname garnered no response. Was his brother truly lost to the world? Dante shook his head to clear it, realised that it was a bad idea when his vision swam. They were already failing and they'd barely even started. Nothing was irreparable, but how long could they carry on going like this? There was blood in his hair, plastering the white locks to his cheek. A head wound so he knew that despite the blood it probably wasn't  _that_  serious. But how could they possibly even hope to continue their quest? How could they save Lady when they could barely stand? They needed time which they didn't have, to regroup and think things through, but all that mattered to him right now was rescuing his friend and despite his callous nature he would have thought Vergil might care just that little bit.

" _Vergil!_ "

Finally he moved from the door-way, striding over to his twin to grip him by the shoulders and spin him around. The sounds in the room seemed strangely loud, echoing around the empty house as his boots met the floor and his fingertips found the silk of his twin's overcoat. He was suddenly aware of how desolate it all was; out in the middle of the woods, in the charred remains of their old home with a brother who wanted to kill him. This place was not one of action there were no longer warm fires or family dinners or children playing. Instead there was something tranquil, eerie as though they had already stepped through a portal into a land filled with ghosts. The spectres made the situation all the clearer, the pain of losing his friend just that little bit sharper.

Dante's voice dropped, he glared up at his twin through a snowdrift of hair. "Where's Lady?"

His twin's face remained impassive, pale in the wan light that shone in streams through the heavy velvet curtains, glistening in the gemstones riveted to the fireplace and hollowing out the pits of Vergil's eyes, the crook of his nose. All the silence did was inflame the rage in Dante's gut; it coiled from deep within him and rose until it burned in the back of his throat and made his eyes blaze. Finally he lost his patience; there was the sound of creaking leather, the floor-boards groaned beneath his heavy boots and Yamato fell from his hand to clatter at their feet. The sounds were harsh, violent as Dante slammed his twin backwards into the cold marble, the mantelpiece digging harshly into Vergil's spine.

"Answer me!" Dante growled the words starting low in his throat and rising within him as his ire grew. "She's my friend Vergil, she's a little girl and god knows what will – is – happening to her because you couldn't defend her!" Hurt flashed in Vergil's eyes, but he remained silent earning him another harsh shove into the fireplace and eliciting a grunt as the air was knocked out of him. Dante leaned in close to his brother, teeth gritted, eyes flashing. "She's worth a hundred of you Vergil and if you let him... if you just-"

A vein in Vergil's jaw jumped and shame tore through his gut. For a second he couldn't bring himself to look his brother in the eye.

"I didn't  _let_  him," he answered finally not knowing what else to say. What did his brother want him to do? Admit that he had failed, that he had actually been unable to defend another being from that repulsive creature? Vergil's pride couldn't quite allow him to stoop so low even when he knew it might be the only thing he could do to stop his twin from putting him through the fireplace.

"Why didn't you stop him?" Dante ground out unable to keep his anger in check. He didn't know what had happened between hitting the dining room floor and Vergil peering down at him moments later. Vergil could have just let that demon walk out with Lady. Maybe it was what he wanted, he had never cared for humans, why should he suddenly care what happened to Lady?

"Don't you think I tried?" Vergil spat, straightening up and shoving his twin's hands away ire in his voice. He waited for his brother to retaliate, but he didn't – perhaps because he knew a fight might be foolish in the state he was in – instead he just eyed his twin with distrust from beneath his bloodstained hair. Vergil sneered and glowered back. "What? Do you really think I'd stoop so low Dante?"

"It wouldn't be the first time," Dante bit out harshly. Just when he thought he could trust his twin again something like this would happen. Just in those brief moments when the banter became semi-normal again and he remembered a happier time. Being in this house didn't help... And now Vergil was back to his old self, scheming and aloof.

"I have no quarrel with the girl," Vergil snapped leaning forwards and snatching Yamato from the ground at his feet. Something in Dante reacted, his body tensed, he went for a gun. Then stopped as soon as he had started, but Vergil noticed rising slowly from where he had kneeled to retrieve his sword watching his twin with an eyebrow raised.

"You really think now is the time to be fighting."

"I don't know what to think about you anymore," Dante answered truthfully turning away and glancing around the empty room. The dust had been disturbed leaving tracks on the rotting wooden floor, against the walls. The desk and a curtain had been shredded by stray bullets. He spoke again before Vergil could retort. He didn't care anymore, his twin wasn't sorry; he didn't even have the decency to pretend that he was. "So what's the big plan Verg?"

"Father's library. We open a portal we-"

"Open a portal?"

"How else do you propose we enter hell? And retrieve our powers and Lady, or do we just wait for that scum to come and make fools out of us all over again?" Vergil responded bitterly. The mention of portals did hit a sore spot. Everything was a sore spot between them.

"So after the portal?" Dante allowed his twin the minor victory. He was right after all; there was only one way to hell.

"We enter hell and track this bastard down. I don't think he's working alone, I know you don't either. Once we've dealt with him it's a simple matter of restoring out powers and rescuing Lady," Vergil answered matter of factly.

"And then we're even? We go our separate ways?" Dante asked with a wry smile. His brother was predictable, he knew it wouldn't be that easy.

"Oh I never said anything about that," Vergil replied in turn. They both knew there was no way out of this without a fight even if they had to postpone it. Dante felt the comfort of that sibling rivalry again – too friendly – not mortal enemies, but brothers arguing over which was better. It made something in his gut twist.

"Right." He sighed, looked away and ran a hand through his matted hair. He needed to cool off and think. Priority number one was saving Lady, screw their powers; he already owed her far too much. "So let's get to this library already."

Vergil nodded, turning back to the fireplace and glancing across it once again. Dante had wondered what his twin's obsession with it was, but now it seemed glaringly obvious. It was a beautiful design; white flecked marble inlaid with dark spirals of obsidian and set at the very centre of those a kaleidoscope of gemstones in hues of purple, blue and jade. The overall effect was stunning, but Dante wasn't much of a one for fine things and he understood Vergil wasn't interested in the craftsmanship either. With practiced hands Vergil ran his fingers round a spiral of obsidian then brushed his palm over the gems which lit at the warmth of his touch. Dante simply watched as he repeated the process again then reached forwards into the darkness at the back of the fireplace and shoved hard.

There was a grinding sound, a clang, and with a loud groan which seemed to shake the whole house to its foundations the back of the fireplace gave way. The fire pit dropped back and revealed a set of narrow stone steps leading down into the blackness. Vergil turned and smiled at his twin who was watching with a quizzical look upon his face. He knew that it annoyed Dante in some way, that he knew a secret about their family home which had never even entered Dante's head. Dante had always longed to be as close to Sparda as Vergil had been so he felt some secret pride that he alone had come into possession of his father's journals and learnt of this place. They had fallen into the right hands after all Dante wouldn't have been able to make head or tail of the ancient demonic language in which they were written.

"After you." Vergil smiled and stepped aside gesturing with an outstretched hand that Dante should lead the way.

Dante looked at the tunnel warily. He wasn't afraid of the dark or small spaces, but there was something unsettling about descending those narrow stares with his back to his brother. They were human now. Vergil could kill him on a whim if Dante lowered his guard too much. He knew he could never trust his brother again. He couldn't even be certain that he had already been lured into some elaborate trap.

Pride, however, was a sin both twin's were blessed with so before his hesitation became noticeable Dante ducked beneath the mantle piece and stepped into the darkness. It stank of damp and soot and coal. The steps were so narrow he had to turn his feet sideways to keep from tripping and as he took the first few steps he could feel Vergil's gaze burning into his back. This was a test; he knew it was, Vergil was checking how much faith he had in his twin. There was something about it which Dante didn't like, because despite how much he hated his brother there was something in him which couldn't believe that he was simply the cold calculating monster which he had become. And yet, when Vergil watched him like this Dante could tell that if he made one wrong move he was as good as dead.

As the spiral turned back on itself and Dante got a look at his brother again – his head now about level with Vergil's knee – he saw that same look of weary contempt in his eyes. Vergil must have noticed that his usually impassive guard was down because he reached forwards to grab something from the mantelpiece before ducking beneath it himself. It took Dante a moment to realise what Vergil was holding in his hand; the old tome he had been guarding with his life for over a week now. He must have set it down on the mantelpiece just before they were attacked.

"What are you waiting for Dante?" Vergil asked voice harsh. He was evidently wondering if they were going to have another fight.

Dante merely grunted in response and turned back to the darkness below him. He had never noticed it before, but he was certain it had been much easier to see in the dark with his demonic powers. He hadn't even considered that they included an enhanced night vision or other senses. It didn't help to stem the worry he felt for the situation he was in. Sure if it was just himself he wouldn't give a shit, but now he had to worry about saving Lady. Vergil's shadow blotted out what little light he had left and he forced himself down into the blackness until the ancient stone walls closed around him from all sides and the dank musty smell consumed him. The darkness pressed in on all sides as they descended further. He could hear the click of Vergil's heels on the steps close to his head – a good kick would slam him into the wall or the ceiling, send him sprawling down the ragged stone steps. Dante hated to admit it, but he was far worse off than his twin, in a fist fight now he might just have lost his edge.

The darkness seemed to stretch forever, but Dante knew they could only have taken a few turns of the staircase when he felt flat stone beneath his feet again. He stumbled forwards a little into a wider passage stretching out his finger-tips to brush against the walls and reaffirm he hadn't simply stepped into a void.

Vergil followed shortly behind him and continued on his footsteps certain despite the poor visibility. It seemed unnaturally dark down here, Dante wouldn't have put it past his father to have made it this way – to deter children from ever making it this far into the blackness. His lips curled into a wry smile at the thought. He could imagine that such a ploy would never work. The twins were too much of an antagonist for each other, even as boys they would not admit they were scared in front of one another. At least not until one unplanned moment when the tension would snap and they would simultaneously run screaming back to their mother and then consequently never speak of the event.

Suddenly Vergil uttered a harsh bark of words, or letters, or something resembling them, into the darkness. It was really a twisted mess of archaic sounds and demonic hisses none of which Dante could even hope to guess the meaning of, but seconds later a faint blue light shone at the end of the surprisingly short corridor. Torches set either side of a doorway at the end of the corridor. Vergil didn't give his brother the time to make some kind of sarcastic comment. Instead he strode purposefully towards the lights and unlatched the seemingly unassuming door at the end of it. He shoved it hard leaning all his weight into forcing the door open, but it barely budged. Eventually Dante got the message and joined his twin leaning hard into the ancient wood. With their combined strength they managed to get the door just about half way – enough for them both to slip through into the room beyond.

This room made Dante blink in surprise. The walls and floor were of the same uneven brickwork and cold stone of the corridor and staircase they had just passed through, but that made the high beamed ceiling and rows of towering bookcases no less impressive. Candelabras and chandeliers of a wrought-iron medieval appearance were dotted here and there among the shelves draped in cobwebs, the wicks of the half-melted candles flickering with the same bright blue light of those in the corridor. Each shelf was stacked with books and trinkets, they were layered with dust and some seemed so fragile they might simply disappear. Books had never really interested Dante, but still this room filled him with a strange longing – this last connection to his father was here and he had no hopes of deciphering any of it. Vergil on the other hand had the whole wealth of the demonic world at his fingertips – that thought in itself was disturbing.

Dante followed silently behind his brother as Vergil cut a path through the dust to what Dante assumed was the centre of the large hall. Here the shelves stood in a towering ring of ancient wood and at their feet, carved into the dark stone, a huge circular pattern spiralled into the middle of the room edged with something resembling ancient runes and Celtic knot work, but somehow a mockery of both. Dante had the unsettling feeling he had seen it before and within seconds he knew where. The design mimicked that of the one in temin-ni-gru. The one which had been stained red with their blood; the thought made something in Dante's gut twist. He was so caught up in the memory that it took him a moment to realise that the stone was wrought in two, across the centre with further tributaries breaking off from the deep tear in the old stone. Before Dante could quite understand what that meant Vergil spoke.

"Did you ever wonder where father went the night he left?" Vergil asked wistfully, his eyes glazed as though he were not seeing what was before him. Perhaps he was thinking of temin-ni-gru as well.

Dante's eyes widened with comprehension as he turned from his twin back to the markings cut into the stone. "You mean...?"

"You always thought he'd gone far away to some distant land," Vergil began, his voice was soft his eyes still distant. "I didn't have the heart to tell you that it was far simpler than that."

"How did you know?" Dante asked once again feeling jealousy twist his gut and something like betrayal. Vergil had known. Vergil knew about all of these things and he had kept them from him; kept these secrets about their father which weren't his to keep.

"I saw him leave," Vergil's eyes slid across to his twin assessing his features. Dante's brow was furrowed and his jaw jumped. His twin was staring intently at the cracks in the stone as though willing them to heal. "You don't believe me?"

Dante shook his head sharply, half in derision half trying to collect his addled thoughts into something coherent. "But mom..."

"Mother knew, she was crying," Vergil's eyes dropped to the floor once again. Talking about their mother was still painful for them both. "I heard her saying goodbye to him and I could tell... I know we were young, but I could tell from her voice that he wasn't coming back."

Dante bit his lip, but stayed quiet waiting for his twin to continue as his eyes fixed once again on the broken stone. The memories of the loss he had felt cut him deeply. The death of both parents still stung to his very core, a wound constantly carved open each time he saw his brother.

"So I followed him. He must have been preoccupied or he would have heard me. I followed him all the way down here, into this room. He left it all open, mother knew to close it... maybe he wanted her to follow him..."

"Get to the point Verg," Dante snapped. He couldn't help it. Something inside him was tearing at the memory. He didn't care how old he was meant to be or how tough. It hurt. Vergil must have understood because he didn't remark upon it as he usually would.

"Well that's it. I followed him, he spilled his blood, spoke words I couldn't comprehend and then he was gone. There was a blast and when I regained my senses I saw the carving as it is now. He stepped through the door and closed it behind him."

"You never told me," Dante tried to hide the emotions from his voice, but they tangled, snared his tongue.

"Are you better for knowing?" Vergil raised an eyebrow quizzically. He was back to himself, philosophical, arrogant... Dante didn't want to argue with that.

"Maybe," Dante shrugged, turned away from the carving, "maybe not."

"I'm sorry to hear that brother," Vergil spoke solemnly, but with a sort of derision at his twin's attitude that Dante didn't like. As soon as they got close they changed again, snapped back into the present with an alarming jolt.

"Whatever Verg," Dante's voice fell into its old lilt as he swung back round to his twin. "So how do we get this one open? I don't think stabbing me is gonna work this time, and it's not like we've got enough blood anyway."

A glimmer of a smile crossed Vergil's lips and his fingers stroked the spine of the book in his hands idly. "It's going to take a while," he admitted. "You should make yourself useful. There's food and blankets in the car. You mares-well rest; no point in going into hell dead on your feet."

"Haha," Dante mocked though Vergil did seem to have intended for his words to be a pun. "And what about Lady? You think that son of a bitch is just going to wait around for us to show up?"

"Well if you'd like to help me translate some of these books I'd be happy to let you..."

Dante held up his hands in mock surrender. "Fine, fine I get it... I'll get some firewood whilst I'm at it. You're crappy candles do nothing for heat."

Vergil simply snorted derisively and opened his book eyes scanning across the pages and glancing at the stones in front of him. Dante turned to let him work knowing that at least this once he could trust his twin to be left alone. Vergil wanted to get into hell as much as he did; in fact he had liked it so much there before...

Dante stopped and turned on his heel looking at Vergil quizzically until his brother noticed and raised an eyebrow in question.

"What is it now Dante?"

"Why are you here?" Dante strode back towards his brother then stopped, hands on hips a strange niggling sensation forming in the back of his mind.

"Excuse me?" The book snapped shut in Vergil's hand as he regarded his brother's change in demeanour.

"You never said why you were here in the first place. I mean you wanted to stay in hell so badly before, seems a little funny that you're wandering around back here in the human world," Dante responded suddenly on edge, realising how stupid he had been to trust his twin.

"Maybe I only stayed to get away from you, did you think about that?" Vergil snarled back not liking his twin's implications one bit.

Dante's eyes narrowed, his teeth gritted and before he could even think he'd raised a gun to point at his twin's head. Despite his wounds he was still fast – faster than his brother at this rate and too close for Vergil to block or react. "What the fuck are you doing here Verg?"

Vergil swallowed, raised his chin a little in defiance. He didn't like being caught off guard. "I don't have to tell you Dante. The matter is as it stands. You want to see your little Lady again you had better start being nicer to me."

"And why shouldn't I just shoot you right now?" Dante growled, his hand shook a little with suppressed rage.

Vergil smirked. "We both know you have no hope in hell or otherwise to get this open. So," he stretched out a hand and placed it atop Ivory's barrel, lowering the gun – Dante let him, "go get the food and let me work."

"Fuck you," Dante growled, turned away holstering Ivory and then let out a harsh shout kicking over a nearby stool laden with books before storming off in the direction of the door.

* * *

 _A/N:_  AHA omg I haven't written anything proper in ages. Hi! Yes this is a filler chapter, yes this is an update. People probably don't read this crap anymore but eh. My writing has suffered through lack of use. I hope to remember how to do it properly and maybe actually finish this fic!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

It was a miracle the water still worked – even if it was cold, and the old pipes howled with tortured groans, and the spout was liable to splutter some greasy brown gunge in protest every so often. A shower, however poor quality, was exactly what Dante needed that morning. His night had been mostly sleepless; if the cold hard stone and coarse blankets, which had been a substitute for a bed, weren't enough of an excuse then the waking nightmares and constant fear of being murdered in the night were surely the cause. When finally his eyes had closed (previously they had been trained on his brother's back) his dreams were a fractured mess of barren tortured landscapes and Lady's screams. He felt her close to him and then ripped away, a thought slipping through his grasp, like a wet fish in bare hands – he had no way of keeping hold of her even in the arms of dreams. And when those nightmares woke him in a cold sweat and gasping for air he would turn to see his brother's silver eyes pinned on him in the darkness. Perhaps Vergil was just as on guard as he, at least that was what Dante told himself. It didn't do much to shake the anxiety that wracked his body and followed him between nightmares.

Dante groaned, stretched and shook his head spraying a light mist of silver across the cracked bathroom tiles. It wouldn't help to dwell on it now. Vergil would be done mending the portal soon. He had awoken earlier than Dante and with every new discovery was rapidly gaining momentum their only words had been to speculate that the gateway should be ready for a final ritual sometime that afternoon. The idea of a ritual – whatever the form – sent a chill down Dante's aching spine.

His body was a wreck, he hadn't really understood how much of one it was until he had looked in the cracked bathroom mirror, peeled off clothes matted with blood and dirt, and felt the bite of the tepid water in healing wounds. His torso was no longer a pale ivory, but a dappled mixture of purples, blues and greens. Another patch of purpley-brown was creeping down from his hairline across his left eye, his lip was split and filled with a deep red mortar and his limbs were adorned with further cuts and bruises. Dante was loathe to admit that he had found his reflection unnerving. He knew he had lost gallons of blood in his lifetime, that bruises had flowered in the heat of battle – but they had never remained long enough for him to check his reflection.

Finally satisfied that his body was clean (at least that was something) he shut off the water and stepped gingerly out of the cracked porcelain tub. He was afraid of it breaking as much as he was afraid of his own body falling apart. He felt better now, somehow more solid, but still only human and reminded with every step – as he groped for his black t-shirt to dry off his hair – that he was pathetically weak.

Dante sat a long time on the edge of the tub allowing himself to dry in the morning sunlight, which streamed in through the half-shattered bathroom window and dappled his skin with golden beams. He had scrounged an old blanket with which to dry himself, but there was something calming in feeling the prickle of his skin as it relinquished itself to the sun's raise. No matter what he did he couldn't shake the thoughts about Lady. That every second he sat here – every second they waited might seem like ten years for her in whatever part of hell she had found herself. He would never forgive himself if anything happened to her, but he knew somewhere that she couldn't possibly escape unscathed.

* * *

When finally he had dressed and made his way across the decaying mansion, moving slowly, dreamlike, mingling with the dust particles which now called the place home, and descended back into the dank and grim excuse for a library (no matter how atmospheric Dante did not share his father's taste for the gothic) Vergil was sitting propped against one of the towering bookshelves binding a wound on his forearm.

"Well I was beginning to think you had retained your abilities and this was all some elaborate ploy to fool me," Dante smirked – Vergil had fewer visible wounds, but apparently there were still some there under his stuffy ensemble. "But I don't think even you would stoop so low as to work with snake-eyes."

"You flatter yourself if you think  _I_  would need to go so far to fool  _you_ ," Vergil shot back concentrating on finishing his bindings before straightening up.

"Touché," the younger twin let the insult slide – he couldn't be bothered with arguing any longer. "So," Dante stepped forward to the edge of the elaborate carvings in the center of the room "you figured this shit out yet?"

Vergil grimaced at his twin's foul language, but said nothing. The restless night had taken some fight out of them both (though he took some pride in knowing that he was in the better shape of the two). Vergil had risen early and taken the time to treat most of his wounds already then set about finishing off his preparations whilst Dante tossed and turned on the hard stone floor. It seemed that sleep had only found his brother some time that morning. They had awoken many times in the night to stare at one another, but Vergil had always felt profoundly safer around his twin knowing that Dante still held some sentimental human notions of family and love deep in his gut. Vergil had committed the ultimate betrayal in raising temin-ni-gru, in fully intending to sacrifice his brother to reach his potential – that was what had broken Dante's trust so completely. Still the idea that Dante thought he would stoop so low as to murder his twin in his sleep was laughable. Despite everything Vergil had always had his honor.

"Yes actually I have," Vergil finally allowed himself to stand – and immediately regretted it. His head swam and he stumbled, catching himself mid fall and steadying before straightening up. Dante had turned alarmed and almost moved to his twin's aid, but something had stopped him at the last second so instead he just eyed Vergil warily.

"What was that about?" Dante asked a touch of concern in his voice. He convinced himself he was only concerned because he  _needed_  Vergil to get into Hell – to save Lady.

It took his brother a moment as he attempted to form words and when his tongue tripped he simply jerked his head to the opposite end of the bookcase by way of explanation. Dante's eyes followed the movement to several innocuous glass jars that sat upon the lower shelf. Or they would have been innocuous had they not been filled with a viscid dark liquid that Dante understood immediately to be blood. Now that wound on his twin's arm made sense.

"What the fuck-"

"The ritual requires blood…" Vergil's voice was still weak; he took a step back to use the bookcase for support.

"Of-fucking-course when does the ritual  _not_  require blood?" Dante asked sarcastically turning back to the curving design carved into the ground, imagining the blood running through each tributary. How much bloody had Vergil allowed himself to lose?  _Stupid…_

"Good thing we're human now because this ritual also required human sacrifice…" Vergil continued on with his dazed explanation, his voice light.

"Damn it Verg why the fuck didn't you wait for me?" Dante sighed. He never understood his twin's behavior – was this that dreaded pride cropping up again?

"It's barely two pints," Vergil replied, voice firmer. He took a breath and pushed himself upright, there wasn't time to allow any further weaknesses. "Make yourself useful," Vergil gestured to the jars, "they need to be in the centre…"

Dante obeyed understanding that for whatever reason his twin's decision to leave him out of this had been with good intentions. Maybe it was a peace offering? He grimaced at the thought as he picked up the dirty jars and walked to the centre of the carving – careful not to trip over the raised breaks in the ground. His father had sealed this entranceway for good reason and now they – his own sons – were going to tear it back open? Something about this didn't sit right with Dante, especially not whilst he held in either hand a glass jar filled with his brother's blood.

"I hope you practiced good hygiene," Dante muttered as he finally reached the hollowed out ring in the middle of the room from where all the branches flowed snake-like and reaching to the book-case wall that surrounded them. In another time the design, the library itself, would have been somewhat awe-inspiring. Now it was dark and broken and decaying.

Dante upturned both glasses slowly, but only enough so as not to get any of his brother's blood on himself. It fell unceremoniously to the dark stone and slithered between the cracks flowing with a surprising pace towards the outer-reaches of the circular carvings. As Dante watched the bright red liquid trace the hollowed lines of the ancient patterns he felt a sudden queasiness gnawing at his gut. The air seemed to grow thick around him, his vision blurred, flashed with a distant memory of a glowing pale blue light, the metallic thrum of blade against blade, Lady's shout…

"Dante," Vergil's voice cut through the fog and drew Dante's gaze to his brother. "You need to leave the platform now."

"Right," Dante nodded and strode to his twin's side anxious not to give away any of the anxiety which had shot through him. If this was another bout of humanity he was not enjoying it. Or maybe finally the events of the past few days had caught up with him mentally as well as physically. "So what do we do now? Say the magic word?"

"I need your amulet," Vergil stated matter-of-factly, holding his palm out flat before Dante. Vergil could sense his twin's hesitation without even turning his head. "Now is not the time for this Dante, your amulet."

Dante's hand grasped the heavy chain at his neck, his eyes narrowed and his mouth twitched, but he couldn't form the words. Besides what would another biting retort do? It wouldn't help Lady and that was all that was important right now. He hated it; how much he had to rely on Vergil, how much he had to trust him…

"Dante." His twin was growing impatient, obviously expecting him to throw a fit about the idea.

"Okay," Dante said and tugged the chain at his neck harshly so that the catch unclasped, then dropped the heavy silver chain into his twin's open palm. The nausea in his gut grew even more intense.

In his other hand Vergil had propped open their father's old journal between his thumb and forefinger. His eyes never even glancing at Dante's amulet he read the old demonic words, which sounded poisonous to Dante's ears. Vergil's voice cracked and broke as it attempted to keep up with the sounds which at points seemed to tear themselves from his lips – another affect of humanity's weakness in the wake of demonic speech. Vergil just hadn't showed how much it hurt to speak that language before, but he could no longer conceal it after losing so much blood.

Finally he took a step forward and reaching the now glowing (but still broken) ring in the center dropped first Dante's then, with a tug, his own amulet. They splashed blood onto Vergil's boots – his voice didn't waver even though Dante could now see how pale his twin's face was, the blood, which sprayed from his lips with every other word.

This was so wrong, every fiber of his being knew that opening this portal would only bring evil into the world, that it was selfish of him to  _need_  his powers back and to risk harm to others just for the life of one woman.

Vergil's voice rose suddenly, there was a crack, a boom beneath them, above them, in the air around them as though something tremendous and invisible had just broken. A beam of hollow blue light shot from the ring in the floor and grew in intensity at Vergil's feet. Then the room shook and the ground heaved as the seals began to pull themselves back into place, the broken ground knitting itself into one with spurts of energetic blue light. They both stumbled under the force, but Vergil's voice continued, even as blood stained his teeth, drowned out by the groaning of the ancient stone beneath them.

Disorientated, Dante didn't realize that Vergil had turned to him until it was too late to consider blocking him. The ancient spellbook had dropped to his feet, a slight jerk of Vergil's wrist released an arcane, serpentine blade that had been concealed within his sleeve and in a flash Vergil had raised it, snatched Dante's open hand with his own free one and sliced open the flesh of his palm. Dante's first instinct was to jerk backwards, but Vergil's grip was vice-like as he kept a firm hold of his twin's wrist.

The wound stung and as Dante watched the rivulets of crimson bloom and slither across his palm, down his fingertips, he was reminded eerily of that same spot in his flesh where Yamato had rent its own bloody wound. If he allowed himself to be a little more paranoid he might even think that Vergil had carved into that memory on purpose. The world around them was still howling in agony and Dante let out his own grunt of pain as Vergil manipulated his palm, wringing more blood from his flesh and watching the viscid liquid drip from Dante's fingertips.

"Asshole," Dante hissed though his words were drowned out by the thundering sound of stone grinding against stone and some other sinister screaming wind that had taken residence up in the center of the library. Vergil merely smirked at his twin's look of displeasure and watched as the blood dripped onto the stones at their feet and lit the ground. The knot-work shone with a flaming red, which shot like fire towards the blue one in the middle of the room.

With one final blast the red and blue merged, then glowed with a demonic purple light that grew in intensity until they were both blinded and deafened by the final harsh boom of the ground at their feet being restored. The blast knocked Dante off balance and released him from Vergil's grasp. When finally the spots cleared from his eyes he could see a swirling purple mist that crackled with demonic energy as it rose before them to scrape the high ceiling.

A portal into hell.

* * *

Lady's eyes fluttered, she blinked and then her obsidian lashes spread themselves against her pale cheeks as her senses returned. She lay spread-eagled, uncouth, upon a bed of fluffy white sheets, her legs twisted one way and her torso awkwardly in the other. She felt like a child waking up from a nightmare. Perhaps because she was…

Whatever semblance of false peace was torn away from her with the chilling notion that she was naked. Not completely – not in some insidious way, but her gun belt was gone, the comforting weight of Kalina Ann was no more and all that did prevent her from being totally exposed was a white silken nightdress which cut off just above her knees.

Alarmed she sat bolt upright her mind still clawing at the semblances of a far-too-deep sleep to take in the situation as quickly as she would have liked. A quick survey of her surroundings left her with the harrowing knowledge that she was not in unfamiliar territory. In fact she  _knew_  this place with a perfect clarity that mocked her with illusions of comfort when she understood that all she would find was the remains of unimaginable pain. The pain which had awoken in her, at the tender age of thirteen, a bloodthirsty need for revenge against the man who had single-handedly destroyed her very existence. Mary, who had owned this room, slept in this bed, had transformed long ago into the woman who had been thrust back into this mockery of her former life.

The room was that of your average, rebellious, teenage girl. There were the semblances of childhood left over – a pink stuffed unicorn, dog-eared picture books – and also the beginnings of young adolescence: the poster for a rock band hung on the wall, a small collection of make-up strewn across the desk… Lady cast around for a weapon and settled on her 5th grade field hockey trophy. Hopping off the bed she crossed the room to it and felt a little more certain with the cool weight of it in her palm.

The question now was what to do next. The bedroom door was closed, she wasn't certain if she would prefer if it were locked or open. If it was locked then she would be trapped her in what could only be described as a nightmare, but if it was open… did she really want to venture out? To see what lay beyond…? Even in her disorientated state she was certain that this was not a dream.

She crossed the room steadily, her feet burying themselves in the thick carpet, and tested the handle. It turned with a creak and a chink of metal on metal, and with a quick intake of breath she yanked the door open. Beyond the hallway was equally unordinary. Except for that she  _knew_ it and that she  _knew_  it shouldn't be there – or that she should be here rather – it looked entirely mundane. Still the sight of her old house was getting to Lady, some tension was rising in her chest, the blood thrumming harsher within her veins, at the back of her eyes. Nothing good could come of this.

Leaving the threshold of her bedroom Lady forced herself to put one foot in front of the other as she traversed the narrow hall which would lead to the main stairwell. Her white-knuckled grip never loosened on the solid weight of her trophy as she let it hang at her side, concealed behind her as she walked. If only she had thought to change into something a little more practical than this hideous night-dress. These virginal robes merely felt like a practical joke.

Nearing the main hall, with the front door only a flight of stairs below Lady almost allowed herself the thought that she might escape – escape to where she did not know, but that wasn't important right now – when she was paralyzed by the gut-wrenching sound of a blood-curdling scream. To be more precise her mother's blood-curdling scream…

"No," Lady gasped and the word was almost a prayer to some unknown god that this could  _not_  happen again. But even as she understood what the sound meant she couldn't avoid it. She was running, flying towards the stairs, feeling awkward and ungainly in the delicate night-dress. On her way down she nearly tripped as her knees locked, her legs felt rubbery and she had to use the hand-rail for support in her half-fall half-run to the bottom. The screams continued, begging, pleading, echoing louder and harsher and she slid on the polished oak floor at the corner as she turned into the dining room…

Blood, the scent filled her nostrils, choked her and a sweat broke out across her brow. She had known what to expect, but it didn't lessen the shock which made her stagger at the door-way, grasp onto the chair at the head of the table for support.

"Father-!"

Arkham stood at the other end of the room, bi-coloured eyes wild, psychotic, his mouth crooked and an ancient sword raised, glistening with blood, in his hand. He turned to Lady, but it seemed to her, as it had seemed to her before, that he wasn't really seeing her, that those widened eyes with blazing irises and dead pupils could no longer comprehend the land of the living.

"Mary no!" Her mother's strangled, drowned scream. "Run!"

"Mary is right where she needs to be," Arkham had turned from his dying wife, finding her no longer worthy of the killing blow as he moved towards his daughter hand outstretched, dripping with blood. "Come darling, this is a necessary evil for the birth of the new world."

"No," Lady spoke vehemently, but her words seemed useless; she didn't know what she was protesting – her father's words or the repetition of this wretched memory for her torment (and probably someone else's enjoyment). She felt trapped somehow, forced to retrace the same steps, to mimic her past self, even though she knew how this all ended.

"Mary don't you see?" Arkham asked raising his hands as if to suggest that clarity hung in the air around them. "You will be my princess and I… I will rule with the power of Sparda… I will keep you safe forever and all it required was sacrifice."

"She's your wife!" Lady screamed, edging round the table as she had done when she was a child. She still didn't know if she had been trying to get away from her father or closer to her mother. Probably both.

"Greater men have done worse deeds," Arkham spoke his eyes widening further. "Did Abraham not sacrifice his son in the name of God?"

"Arkham!" The cry was that of her mother's – weak but strong. Her mother had always been beautiful, always fierce. She was drowning in her own blood and still she managed to sound defiant. "Get away from her!"

Arkham either didn't hear his wife's cries or ignored her. Lady knew now he was too far gone, that the story would play out as it had done before and a million times since in her mind. Still when she finally could she left the protection of the dining chairs to race to her mother's side, dropping the trophy to slip in the blood, attempt to haul her up before her father could reach them.

"Mary go," her mother insisted, shoving her away with a bloodied hand. Her night-dress was soaked in the stuff, and the pale skin of her legs. She felt too as though she were drowning in it. She didn't know if she could stand any longer. Still she attempted to hook an arm beneath her mothers, to pull her up.

"Mom-"

Her father had reached them. The sword fell like the dagger of Damocles, from above and behind Lady and straight through her mother's chest until it splintered into the wood floor below. Her mother let out a harsh strangled cry which stung Lady's ears. Blood spattered her face, stung her eyes and Lady was still though it felt to her as though she must have been screaming too. Arkham's hand tangled in her hair, pulled her back and up and Lady felt herself barely able to move as she stared at her mother's corpse pinned like a bug in a collection.

"No!" Whatever semblance of coherence worked on breaking herself free. She felt her hair tear from her skull, her flailing arms caught uselessly at the air… "No this is not happening! You bastard, I will kill you,  _I will kill you!_ "

A deep rumbling laugh caught her off guard. The sound wasn't her father's voice. With the moment of clarity the room around her started to turn black, the vision of her mother's corpse and the dining room blotted out by darkness. The grip in her hair was no more, she fell to her knees, and when finally she looked up a pair of yellow eyes glittered in the darkness. She thought, if she strained her ears, she could hear the bastard clapping.

Then the world materialized into something else: a cavern of dark red stone and something else, something which seemed fleshy and human, the ground was viscid. She fell onto her behind, attempted to crawl backwards and merely hit a wall of the stuff. It made her skin crawl.

She blinked as though waking up from a dream, which wasn't far from the truth. "Where…?"

"Well where did you think my dear  _Lady_?" he drew out the word, savoring it, and at the same time raised his arms in a grand gesture at the cavern around them. "Hell of course!" He grinned. "Not what you were expecting?"

Lady chose to ignore him, looked from side to side attempting to ascertain where the exit might be. She had only just begun to notice how warm it was, the air was close and suffocating, carrying a metallic taste, which stuck in the back of her throat. With alarm she realized that she couldn't focus properly, that the world rippled and strange lights danced across her vision without warning. She raised a hand to her head, covering her face and feeling nauseous.

"What's the matter? Suffering from a little jet-lag?" The demon giggled now impossibly close to her.

"What's wrong with me?" Lady groaned, the world was spinning, she wanted to get up, to run – her every instinct told her to – she didn't think that she could.

"You think that hell would be so bad if your kind could just wander around down here willy-nilly?"

"D-Dante…"

"Oh yes the wonder-twins," the demon was speaking too fast for her, his high-pitched drawl was insufferable, she couldn't keep up. "I imagine they're having a fun time looking for you. Being human must be such a drag."

He leaned down and, with a firm grip beneath her chin, raised Lady's head so that their eyes met. She saw the malice there, the sick enjoyment. "They're going to walk right into my trap looking for you, this couldn't have worked out more perfectly. Pathetic isn't it? That their emotions get in the way so easily. I could have probably even let them keep their powers, it's not as if those half-bloods ever stood a chance-"

"Shut up," Lady slurred and with a great defiant effort spat in the demon's face.

He loosed his grip on her chin roughly, as though she had bitten him, and wiped away the saliva with a grimace of disgust.

"Oh dear Lady you're going to have to learn to treat me a little better than that if you want to survive down here," the demon chided. "After all we can have plenty of fun with your tortured little soul until the sons of Sparda make their grand entrance."

* * *

_A/N: A fucking update? After over_ _a year? Yeah I'm just as surprised as you are. I have kinda made this vow to myself - and yes I know I've made it a million times before - that I will finish every fic I have ever posted. That includes the ones on here and AFFN. This one is by far the most unfinished, but it is also the one I think I would have the most fun writing if I kept my mind to it._

_But you know how it is right? Life gets in the way on a regular basis, and if it's not life it's my insecurities when it comes to writing - because really the_ _most I write these days is essays - and you bare so much of your soul when you do write. I'm not sure I can be the sadist I once was in my teenage years. I also know that I have become a lot worse at everything to do with writing than I used to be, but as I finished off this chapter I found myself really powering through and getting into it again so fingers crossed right?_

_If you want some updates on my writing or what I'm doing with it please go check out my tumblr where I blog and write about writing now and again._

_Thanks for sticking with me if you have, and thanks for reading if you're new. I WILL update and reviews only strengthen that resolve!_

_-Luce_

**Author's Note:**

> Reviews are welcome and kept close to the heart! :)


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